The 2026 March Madness games run from mid‑March through early April, starting with the First Four on March 17–18 and ending with the national championship on Monday, April 6.

Key dates for March Madness 2026

  • Selection Sunday: Sunday, March 15 (bracket reveal, 6 p.m. ET on CBS).
  • First Four: Tuesday–Wednesday, March 17–18 in Dayton, Ohio (UD Arena).
  • First round: Thursday–Friday, March 19–20 at various regional sites.
  • Second round: Saturday–Sunday, March 21–22.
  • Sweet 16: Thursday–Friday, March 26–27.
  • Elite Eight: Saturday–Sunday, March 28–29.
  • Final Four: Saturday, April 4 at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis.
  • National championship game: Monday, April 6, also at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Quick scoop on “when are the March Madness games”

Here’s a simple way to think about when the March Madness games are played each year:

  • Games start the week after Selection Sunday, with play‑in (First Four) games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
  • Wall‑to‑wall first‑round games run all day Thursday and Friday, followed by the second round over the weekend.
  • The tournament then slows to evening doubleheaders for Sweet 16 and Elite Eight the following week.
  • Everything wraps up with the Final Four on Saturday night and the title game on Monday night in early April.

Sample daily windows

While exact tip times vary by matchup and TV window, you can usually expect:

  • Day sessions: roughly early afternoon to late afternoon (around 12 p.m.–5 p.m. ET) during the first and second rounds.
  • Night sessions: roughly early evening to late night (around 6:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m. ET).

Mini forum-style note

If you’re planning around “when are the March Madness games,” the big binge‑watch days are that first Thursday and Friday, when games run almost nonstop from lunch to midnight across CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV.

Fans on forums often describe these first two days as the “best sports days of the year,” because you can flip channels and catch finishes every few minutes while your bracket lives or dies in real time.

Simple HTML table of the 2026 dates

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Round</th>
      <th>Dates (2026)</th>
      <th>Notes</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Selection Sunday</td>
      <td>March 15</td>
      <td>Bracket reveal at 6 p.m. ET on CBS.[web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>First Four</td>
      <td>March 17–18</td>
      <td>Play‑in games in Dayton, Ohio (UD Arena).[web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>First round</td>
      <td>March 19–20</td>
      <td>Main 64‑team bracket begins; all‑day games.[web:5][web:7]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Second round</td>
      <td>March 21–22</td>
      <td>Winners advance to Sweet 16.[web:7]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Sweet 16</td>
      <td>March 26–27</td>
      <td>Primetime evening games.[web:5][web:7]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Elite Eight</td>
      <td>March 28–29</td>
      <td>Regional finals decide Final Four.[web:5][web:7]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Final Four</td>
      <td>April 4</td>
      <td>Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis.[web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Championship</td>
      <td>April 6</td>
      <td>Title game, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis.[web:5][web:4]</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

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