For ESPN Tournament Challenge, brackets are due right before the first game of the main NCAA tournament tips off, not before the First Four play-in games.

2026 ESPN bracket deadline

For the 2026 men’s March Madness ESPN Tournament Challenge, the bracket lock time is:

  • Thursday, March 19, 2026, at about 12:15 p.m. ET (just before the first game begins).

Women’s Tournament Challenge brackets typically lock right before the first women’s game on Friday, which in 2026 is:

  • Friday, March 20, 2026, around 12:30 p.m. ET.

In practical terms: you can start filling brackets right after Selection Sunday on March 15, 2026, and you must have them submitted and finalized before that first tip on Thursday (men) or Friday (women).

If you’re cutting it close, rely on the countdown timer inside ESPN’s Tournament Challenge page/app, since ESPN may list a precise lock time like 12:15 p.m. ET.

TL;DR: ESPN brackets are usually due a few minutes before the very first game of the main tournament on Thursday (men) and Friday (women), with 2026 men’s brackets due around 12:15 p.m. ET on March 19.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.