The Super Bowl is more of a series of advert breaks surrounded by a three-hour game. The FIFA World Cup has been expanded to the point that just about anyone can qualify, while the Olympics has sports that you have never heard of before, and have to be decided by a group of faceless judges.
These are some of the biggest sports events on the planet, but it could be argued that they don’t really deliver on a regular basis. Some title games or series merely confirm the champion, with the best of the action coming in the playoffs before the final. For pure excitement, there is another sports event that is always a sure-fire hit, and the brisk business of all the best March Madness sportsbooks only proves that fact. Just check VegasBetting.net to discover the sportsbooks you need and see for yourself.
The NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments, or March Madness as it is more commonly known, may only be college sports, but it never disappoints, and can surely be considered the greatest sports event of the year.
Non-Stop Action
This year, March Madness began with the Men’s First Four on March 17th and will finish on April 6th with the National Championship game. The women’s tournament will run for two fewer days. A total of 68 teams will have competed in each of the tournaments, with the games only slightly slowing down as the tournaments draw to a close.
There is simply no other sports event that has so many games in such a short space of time. There will be lots of games every day at the beginning of this summer’s FIFA World Cup, but the off-days get more frequent as the competition goes on – and there still aren’t as many match-ups as March Madness offers.
Shocks and Upsets
Compared to most of the popular sports leagues around the world, the major leagues in the US have more of a sense of parity. The draft system that provides weaker teams with the best athletes coming out of college is designed to ensure that everyone should be able to beat everyone else over a period of time.
That system doesn’t always work, though (as Cleveland Brown fans can attest to), and even these major leagues can become very predictable. That is definitely not the case when it comes to March Madness. The Cinderella stories of smaller teams dumping out the so-called elite are enjoyed every year. Those minnows might not go on to win a championship, but they provide some of the most cherished memories in sports.
Single Elimination
Major League Baseball trudges through a 162-game season. NFL teams might only play 17 regular season games, but many teams know their playoff dreams are over well before the final game. Even teams at the FIFA World Cup will be able to take it easy in a game in the opening stage if they have already won enough points to progress.
But at March Madness, every single game matters. There is no dialing in a performance for these student athletes. With single elimination games from start to finish, everyone knows that taking your foot off of the pedal could mean the end of the tournament. When one mistake can mean the end, this format brings excitement and drama throughout.
The Bracket
With March Madness, it is not just on the court where the action happens. Sports fans might enjoy predicting, and even betting on, the outcomes of games and tournaments. But nothing gets the fans more involved than the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournaments. Putting together your own bracket is all part of the enjoyment.
So-called experts and podcasters will spend hours telling fans how to put together a successful bracket, but the fact is that there has never been anyone who has correctly predicted the entire tournament. That is hardly surprising, given the number and unpredictable nature of the games. But that doesn’t stop absolutely everyone from trying each year.
Everyone’s a Die-Hard
You can tell how good a sports event is by how excited non-fans get about the proceedings. The Olympics is a good example of this, when people who have never watched weightlifting before are suddenly fully engaged with every clean and jerk over the course of a week. March Madness is like that – but even more so.
This tournament will make fans care deeply about a school they might not even be able to locate on a map. Suddenly, the score of a college basketball game is the most important thing in the world. And those non-fans are only taking their inspiration from the college students at the games, showing true passion as they get behind their teams.
Stars of Tomorrow
College basketball, and March Madness in particular, is a purer form of sports where the athletes are giving everything without much thought of contracts and endorsements. Many of the student athletes competing will never even play professional basketball, meaning that this tournament is the pinnacle of their sports career.
There is also the chance, however, to see some of the NBA stars of tomorrow at the beginning of their careers. You can watch these athletes play the game they love before they become jaded veterans. That is just another reason why March Madness could well be the best sports event of the year. Nothing else really comes close.