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If you’ve ever filled out a March Madness bracket at work, with friends, or just for fun, you already know how competitive it can get.

Now imagine turning all that excitement into a March Madness fundraiser that raises real money for your marathon race charity, school, team, or cause, without hosting an event, cooking baked goods, or selling anything.

This is hands down one of my favorite March fundraising ideas because:

• It’s simple to set up
• It adds a little excitement to watching dozens of basketball games
• People love participating
• You can raise a decent total in just a few weeks

And bonus: you don’t need to know anything about basketball to run it.

Let’s break it down step by step.

Related Post: For more March-themed fundraisers, read this March fundraising guide.

What Is March Madness?

March Madness is the annual, single-elimination college basketball tournament officially known as the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament. There is a tournament for the men’s and women’s divisions.

Here’s How March Madness Works in a Nutshell

• 68 men’s and 68 women’s teams compete for a chance to get an invite to “The Dance.” The Dance is the end-all tournament that determines the national champion for college basketball, regardless of conference.
• The winning team advances to the next round and the losing team is eliminated from the tournament.
• Fans fill out brackets to predict the winners for every game before the tournament starts.
• Wild upsets (called bracket busters) happen every year.

It’s fast-paced, unpredictable, and perfect for a March Madness bracket fundraiser.

How Do March Madness Brackets Work?

Here’s the simple version:

• Teams are ranked 1–16 across four regions
• Higher seeds play lower seeds (1 vs 16, 2 vs 15, etc.)
• You predict winners for every round before the tournament begins
• Earlier rounds are scored with lower values with the final game earning the most points
• Most points at the end of the tournament wins

That’s it.

No basketball expertise required. Everyone has a different strategy for filling out their bracket. Some people fill out their brackets based on player stats, overall seeding, team colors, mascots, or purely vibes. Most people fill out multiple brackets since there is likely a big upset in the first weekend (rounds one and two).

How Does a Basketball Tournament Fundraiser Work?

A March Madness pool fundraiser is basically a paid bracket competition.

Here’s the flow to use this event for a fundraising program:

1. Participants pay an entry fee (usually $5–$20) per bracket. When I have hosted this fundraiser, I charge $10 per bracket and allow multiple brackets.
2. Players submit a bracket with their picks directly to the platform. You don’t have to manage other players’ brackets.
3. You track entries and payments. Have players send their entry fees to you directly instead donating to your fundraising page.
4. Winners earn prizes based on the most overall points. When players submit their bracket, they’ll also pick a combined score for the final game as a tie-breaker.
5. A portion of the money raised overall goes to your fundraiser. Consider how you’d like to split the pool and prizes.

March Madness is one of the easiest fundraising ideas because there’s no complicated planning, it’s hosted online and it’s really fun.

Pro Tip: If you host a basketball tournament party, check out this amazing basketball party decor!

When Is March Madness This Year?

Here are important dates you’ll need to know for the 2026 Men’s tournament:

Selection Sunday: March 15

This is when the teams are announced for each of the four divisions, including the seeding (ranked 1-16).

Play-in games (First Four): March 17–18 

There are four play-in games (one for each bracket) where the winner is invited to the tournament. The First Four games don’t count for scoring in most pools.

Main tournament begins: March 19

Games begin at 12:00 EST and all brackets must be submitted before the first game begins. The platform will lock down new entries at the first tipoff.

Championship Game: April 6

The final game of the tournament. The two winning teams in the Final Four play in the finals.

Most people submit brackets after the play-in games and before the first official round tips off. It’s likely most of the completed brackets will be submitted within 12 hours of the first game.

How to Create a March Madness Bracket Fundraiser (Step-by-Step)

This is the exact system that keeps things easy and stress-free. This guide makes hosting a March Madness bracket fundraiser really easy.

Choose a Bracket Pool Platform

Use one of these for automatic scoring and live leaderboards:

• ESPN
• CBS Sports (this one is my personal favorite since it’s very easy to set up)

Everyone enters their own bracket through their own account. It’s helpful that the platforms handle all the scoring since there are so many games and it’s a lot to keep track of.

They don’t handle payments or prize distribution, so you’ll need to coordinate how fees are paid to you. 

Set Entry Fees + Prize Structure

Decide how many prizes and how you’d like to distribute the winnings.

• Cost per bracket (I recommend $10)
• What percentage is donated to your charity
• How the prizes are broken out

I love a 50/50 split because it keeps people motivated while still raising solid money. I base the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes based on a percentage.

Pro Tip: If you’d prefer to have 100% of the pool donated to charity, reach out to local businesses to donate prizes for a gift basket or gift cards to the winners.

How Much Could You Raise With a Bracket Fundraiser?

If you’re curious how much you can raise through a bracket fundraiser, here are the tiers of how much you could raise with $10 brackets.

Fundraising Expected Totals

If the prizes are based on 50% of the overall pool, here is what you can expect to add to your fundraising page.

• 20 brackets = $100
• 50 brackets = $250
• 100 brackets = $500

The other 50% would be available for prizes.

Example Tournament Prizes

Here is an illustration of how much money you can fundraise through a bracket pool with a 50/50 split.

• 50 brackets × $10 = $500 total
• $250 donated
• $250 for prizes

Based on $250 in the prize pool, here’s how you can break out the prizes.

• 1st place: 75% ($187.50)
• 2nd place: 20% ($50)
• 3rd place: 5% ($12.50)

There’s no required number of players like football squares, so you can scale up easily.

Pro Tip: Have people pay you directly (Venmo/Zelle/PayPal) so you can handle prizes, then make one donation labeled March Madness to your fundraising page for transparency.

How to Get People to Join Your Bracket Pool

Create your pool and share the link with friends to submit a bracket. 

• Post about your bracket on social media
• Share your bracket link with friends in group texts
• Send the link via email to friends and family
• Add your link to your social media profile or your Linktree page and direct people to where to find it to join.

Create excitement for your pool and share: 

• A tournament countdown with reminders on social media
• Encourage multiple bracket entries

I recommend using a simple spreadsheet to track who has paid their fees and how many brackets each person has in the pool. All bracket fees should be paid before the tournament begins.

Related Post: Check out these tips for sharing running content on social media.

Let the Platform Track Everything

Once the tournament starts:

• Scores update automatically through the app
• Leaderboard refreshes in real time with current points and a maximum points predictor
• You just watch the chaos unfold

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Post: If you have questions about running a marathon for charity, you should read this post with charity runner FAQs.

Why a March Madness Fundraiser Works So Well

This fundraiser is a lot of fun and an easy way to add to your fundraising minimum. This fundraiser works so well because it’s:

• Super low effort 
• High engagement
• Easy to scale
• No upfront costs
• Perfect for busy schedules

It’s one of the best basketball tournament fundraisers if you want to make a huge impact.

Conclusion: A Fun, Stress-Free March Fundraiser That Actually Works

If you’re looking for a simple fundraiser that’s exciting and proven to raise money, a bracket pool is hard to beat.

You’ll get:

• Friendly competition
• Built-in excitement
• Real donations for your cause

And best of all, it runs itself once it starts.

Planning on hosting this fundraiser? Comment below and let me know! Follow along on Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest. And get more marathon fundraising tips by subscribing to my newsletter.

Disclaimer: This fundraiser is for entertainment purposes only and not intended as financial or gambling advice.