March Madness wagering expected to top $3 billion

• David PurdumMar 13, 2025, 02:51 PM ET

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  • Joined ESPN in 2014
  • Journalist covering gambling industry because 2008

March Madness remains the most significant betting occasion in the United States.An approximated$3.1 billion is expected to be bet on this year’s NCAA men’s and women’s basketball competitions with U.S. sportsbooks, a nearly 15%year-over-year increase and more than double the betting on the Super Bowl, according to research from the American Gaming Association launched Thursday.The AGA, a Washington, D.C.-based trade group, analyzed monthly profits reports from state gambling regulators to form their $3.1 billion price quote. They approximated$ 1.4 billion would be bet on the Super Bowl in February.Halvor Egeland, a trading supervisor for BetMGM, said the sportsbook is expecting betting handle on Round 1

of the men’s competition to be similar to the Super Bowl.”Super Bowl will definitely bring some bigger private wagers than the competition, however there’s no lack of interest

,”Egeland told ESPN.”March Madness is a massive time of year for us.”The brackets for the guys’s and women’s competitions will be launched Sunday. The AGA’s quote does not include any cash ran the risk of in

office bracket swimming pools.” March Madness is one of the most exciting times in American sports, with fans fired up for both the men’s and ladies’s NCAA tournaments,”Joe Maloney, senior vice president of strategic communications for the AGA, said in the release revealing the quote. “As legal wagering expands across the U.S., more fans than ever have the opportunity to wager legally and responsibly. “Thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia have legal betting markets.The betting interest on ladies’s college basketball continues to grow. BetMGM reported a 35%year-over-year increase in the quantity of cash bet on women’s college basketball.Patrick Berbert, who oversees college basketball chances for Caesars Sportsbook, said the boost in appeal of the ladies’s game has continued after previous Iowa star Caitlin Clark moved to the WNBA.

“Now, you are seeing the similarity JuJu Watkins for USC and Paige Bueckers of UConn carrying over that popular wagering momentum, “Berbert told ESPN.A 2024 study commissioned by the NCAA found that gambling-related harassment of professional athletes peaks during the basketball tournaments, with 73 %of violent or threatening messages that referenced betting or match-fixing allegation happening during March Madness. Females athletes got around 59%more violent messages than males, the analysis found.The AGA, as part of its responsible video gaming campaign, motivates gamblers to “Keep your cool “and stresses that the outcome of a bet– win or lose– is” not an invite to criticize players, coaches, or officials online or in-person.”