When to watch Selection Sunday
- Sunday, March 15, at 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT) for the men’s
- Sunday, March 15, at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) for the women’s
Where to watch
- The men’s Selection Show is on Paramount Plus Premium
- The women’s Selection Show is on ESPN
Carries TBS, TNT, truTV, CBS, ABC, and ESPN for $60 a month
YouTube TV
Carries every channel you need to watch March Madness for for $70 a month
DirecTV MySports Base Pack
Carries ABC, CBS and ESPN for $85 per month
Fubo
It’s almost time for NCAA March Madness. It’s been almost a year since the Florida Gators won the men’s basketball championship and the UConn Huskies earned the women’s title, and both teams seem poised once again to make a splash in their respective 2026 NCAA tournaments. But before we can start to speculate about who’s going to take the whole thing this year, we need to find out which teams will be playing at March Madness, and that all comes down to Selection Sunday, when the top 68 teams in the men’s and women’s leagues are revealed.
If you want to watch this year’s Selection Show, the men’s will be airing on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus Premium on Sunday, March 15 at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT, and the women’s will air on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. If it’s games you want, the First Four will kick off both tournaments on March 17 (men’s) and March 18 (women’s); brackets will be set after Sunday’s selection announcements, but in the meantime, we’ve got the complete schedule of every round below.
With so many games airing across multiple channels and streaming services, we’re here to help you figure out the best ways to watch or stream all of March Madness. Here’s what you need to know.
When is Selection Sunday?
Selection Sunday is March 15, 2026.
How to watch Selection Sunday
March Madness kicks off with the Selection Show, where teams that have made it into the tournament are announced. With all major college basketball conference championships wrapping up on or before March 15, that’s the day when we’ll find out which 68 teams will participate in the men’s and women’s March Madness tournaments. This year’s Selection Show for the men’s tournament airs on Sunday, March 15 at 6 p.m. ET on CBS and streams on Paramount Plus Premium. You can also catch the women’s Selection Show this Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.
When does March Madness 2026 start?
March Madness 2026 officially begins on March 17 with the men’s First Four games. The women’s First Four will begin on March 18.
How to watch March Madness
Women’s March Madness games will air across ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNews. The women’s championship final will be broadcast on ABC and stream on ESPN Unlimited.
ESPN Unlimited is ESPN’s comprehensive, standalone streaming service. For $30/month, you can watch every women’s March Madness game all in one place.
Read our review of ESPN Unlimited.
Men’s March Madness games will be split between TNT, TBS, truTV and CBS.
You’ll be able to watch select games from the First Round to Elite Eight live on CBS, which streams on Paramount Plus Premium for $14 a month.
HBO Max
Watch men’s games on HBO Max for $18.49 a month
With HBO Max, you can stream 46 games at the men’s March Madness tournament including the Final Four and the Championship Final. And with HBO Max’s Multiview experience, you can stream up to three matchups simultaneously. Live sports are only available on HBO Max’s Standard ($18.49 a month) and Premium ($22.99 a month) plans.
Watch March Madness with a live TV streaming service
Don’t want to subscribe to multiple streaming services to watch March Madness? That’s understandable. Luckily, there are a few live TV streaming services where you can watch most or all of the men’s and women’s tournaments all in one place.
The men’s games will be on TBS, TNT, truTV and CBS, and women’s games will be carried across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNews. With a subscription to YouTube TV, DirecTV or Hulu with Live TV, you can watch every channel that’s broadcasting the men’s and women’s tournaments. (Unfortunately, while Fubo is still great for watching tons of major sporting events and even includes access to ESPN Unlimited, it does not carry TBS, TNT or truTV, making it a less ideal option for watching the men’s tournament.)
YouTube TV costs $83/month and includes TBS, TNT, truTV and CBS for the men’s tournament and ESPN’s suite of channels for the women’s tournament. Right now, you can sign up for YouTube TV and get your first two months for $60/month, and there is a free, 21-day trial.
Not every local channel is available in every market, so you’ll need to make sure the networks broadcasting the 2026 tournament are offered in your area. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks you get.
Read our YouTube TV review.
Hulu with Live TV costs the same per month as YouTube TV and features every channel you need to watch both March Madness tournaments. On its live news page, you can enter your ZIP code under the “Can I watch local news in my area?” question at the bottom of the page to see which local channels you get.
Read our Hulu with Live TV review.
DirecTV’s MySports package costs $70 a month and includes ABC, CBS, TBS, TNT, truTV and ESPN Unlimited, which means it’s one of the most comprehensive places to watch every March Madness game. Use the channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available where you live.
Read our DirecTV Stream review.
Fubo’s Pro plan costs $74 a month and includes ABC, CBS and access to ESPN Unlimited. Fubo is currently offering the first month for $49. Click here to see which local channels you get. While Fubo is a great option to watch the women’s tournament, the service does not carry TBS, TNT or truTV, which you’ll need to watch most men’s games.
Read our Fubo review.
For more, check out our live TV streaming services guide and our recommendations for the best sports streaming services.
How to watch March Madness 2026 for free
The NCAA’s March Madness Live site and March Madness Live app are great options to watch games for free. You can watch March Madness Live on iOS and Android devices along with Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV and Xbox, but you will have to sign in with a valid TV provider login.
You can also use an indoor antenna hooked up to your TV to watch games that are broadcast on ABC and CBS. Our comparison of indoor antennas can help you find the one that’s right for you, and our top pick comes in at $40.
Want to watch March Madness with no strings attached? One of the best ways we know of to watch both the men’s and women’s tournaments is to sign up for YouTube TV’s 21-day free trial, which will last long enough for you to see every game.
March Madness tournament schedule
Here are the complete schedules for the men’s and women’s tournaments:
Men’s March Madness schedule
- Selection Sunday: March 15, 2026
- First Four: March 17-18, 2026
- First Round: March 19-20, 2026
- Second Round: March 21-22, 2026
- Sweet 16: March 26-27, 2026
- Elite Eight: March 28-29, 2026
- Final Four: Saturday, April 4, 2026
- National Championship: Monday, April 6, 2026, 8:30 p.m. ET (TBS)
Women’s March Madness schedule
- Selection Sunday: March 15 on ESPN
- First Four: March 18-19, 2026
- First round: March 20-21, 2026
- Second round: March 22-23, 2026
- Sweet 16: March 27-28, 2026
- Elite Eight: March 29-30, 2026
- Final Four: Friday, April 3 at 7 p.m. (Second semifinal starts 30 minutes after the first game ends.)
- NCAA championship game: Sunday, April 5 at 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC)
Read the full article here