The official March Madness men’s bracket is released on Selection Sunday , which in 2026 falls on Sunday, March 15 at about 6 p.m. ET on CBS.

Quick Scoop: Bracket Release Timing

  • The NCAA reveals the full 68‑team field and bracket during a live Selection Sunday TV show. This is when “March Madness brackets” are officially released to the public.
  • In 2026, that Selection Sunday show is scheduled for March 15 around 6 p.m. ET on CBS, though the exact start can shift slightly if earlier games run long.
  • Major bracket games (ESPN, NCAA’s official game, Yahoo, etc.) typically open or fully populate their brackets immediately after the show ends, letting fans start filling them out that evening.

How it usually works each year

While the exact calendar dates change annually, the pattern is the same:

  1. Selection Sunday:
    • Always the Sunday before the First Four.
    • Bracket drops during a TV special, usually early evening ET.
  1. Brackets go live on apps/sites:
    • As soon as the field is announced, bracket games sync the matchups and open for entries.
  1. Deadline to submit:
    • You can keep editing picks until just before the first full round games tip off (the Thursday of the first round, typically around midday ET).

So if you’re planning around “when are March Madness brackets released,” mark Selection Sunday on your calendar and expect to be filling out brackets that same evening once the TV show reveals the field.

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