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State of the Screens

The Madness Returns

By March 19, 2021No Comments

March Madness Celebration

Big news: After being canceled in 2020, NCAA March Madness is back!

Key details for 2021 NCAA March Madness:
1) 68 teams
2) 67 games
3) All games played in the Indianapolis area
4) 6 venues
5) 25% max capacity limit on the crowd

March Madness Tweet

Worth the time: The Athletic has a fantastic breakdown on the “bubble-like” environment that teams/officials will be working under, including how they will keep 2,312 team members (34 X 68 teams) safe from the virus.

Wow: The NCAA generates ≈ 80% of its total revenue from March Madness. Last year’s cancellation cost them $702M. Fortunately, they recouped $270M from insurance, but that still left a huge hole.

NCAA revenue (YoY growth) according to the NCAA:
1) 2019 – $1.2B
2) 2020 – $519M (↓ 57%)

NCAA Revenues 2020 vs 2019

Video: SBJ Spotlight March 10 NCAA Tournament Segment

SBJ Spotlight March 10 NCAA Tournament Segment

Michael Beach

Michael Beach is the Chief Executive Officer of Cross Screen Media, a media analytics and software company that enables marketers to plan, activate, and measure CTV and linear TV at the local level. Michael is also the founder and editor of State of the Screens, a weekly newsletter focused on video advertising that is a must-read for thought leaders in the advertising industry. He has appeared in such publications as PBS Frontline, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Axios, CNBC and Bloomberg, and on NPR’s Planet Money podcast.

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