The women's version of March Madness is sold out and has provided advertising assists for other Walt Disney Co. female sports properties.
As of the week of March 11, inventory in the tournament was 98% sold out, with the company holding back units for brands eyeing last-minute opportunities. The tournament has attracted a bevy of new advertisers and categories across coverage of the 67-game event that will culminate with Final Four matchups and the championship game on April 5 and 7.
"We still have a bit there and are keeping a close eye on it," said Jacqueline Dobies, vice president of revenue and yield management at Disney Advertising, in an interview. "People are coming after what's left."
The hard part is not finding interested advertisers but spreading the inventory around. "If we took all the demand in the upfront, we would have been oversold in May," Dobies said. "It's been tough finding a place for everybody and not selling out."
Building viewership
The tournament reached new viewing heights last season, with 9.9 million watchers for LSU's win over Iowa in the championship game on ABC (US) and ESPN2 (US). The game set a record for Disney platform-delivered women's or men's college basketball. All told, the various vehicles averaged 983,000 viewers, a 55% increase over the 2022 tournament, with every round registering at least a double-digit advance from the prior year's event.
This year's March Madness numbers could surpass those deliveries, depending on matchups and on-court outcomes. Interest in the women's game overall — and Iowa star Caitlin Clark in particular — helped generate record viewership on FOX (US) and BTN (US).
ESPN Inc.'s suite of networks enjoyed the group's most-viewed women's college regular season since 2008-09, registering a 37% advance across 81 games. ESPN (US) and ABC telecasts averaged 476,000 viewers.
Ad spending against ESPN/Disney women's sports portfolio has grown "exponentially this year," with the tournament leading the way, Dobies said. Coverage of women's softball and the sport's World Series also has risen substantially and is starting to approach the women's basketball territory.
Increased viewership around the women's game has resulted in more brands looking to support basketball. "It's a bit of a new trend. Brands want to buy basketball and view the women's game as part of good basketball, along with the men," Dobies said.
The Disney ad executive is bullish about the company's eight-year renewal pact, beginning with the 2024-25 school year for 21 women's and 19 men's NCAA championships. The deal is valued at about $920 million over its term, with about $65 million allocated annually to women's March Madness.
"It is exciting to see how these sports keep growing," Dobies said. "We are optimistic as we look ahead to our continued investments in women's sports."
Advertising roster
The ad roster for this year's women's March Madness tournament comprises 87 advertisers, including 42 new ones. Google LLC, American Honda, Crown Imports, Adidas America and Home Depot, which has become an NCAA corporate sponsor, are the largest freshmen advertisers.
The company has opened seven new tournament categories this time, including bottled waters, government and military, home insurance, sports and protective footwear, and security and fire safety systems.
NCAA corporate champions will have significant positions. Capital One Financial Corp. is again the presenting sponsor of the tournament, while AT&T Inc. is the halftime sponsor.
Coverage game plan
All 67 tournament games will air on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews (US) and ESPNU (US). ESPN and ABC will televise their most tournament games to date with 26 and nine, respectively.
Plans call for the company to MegaCast the Final Four and championship game. The multi-telecast format shares game content across multiple linear and streaming networks, with differentiated lead-ins and talent.
ESPN will air the Final Four national semifinals on April 5, while ABC will air the championship game on April 7. ESPN+ will offer a simulstream of the Sue Bird-Diana Taurasi altcasts for the semifinals and the title game. The streamer will also provide above and side-court vistas of the three marquee matchups.
Women's movement
Coverage of the women's tournament on ESPN outlets overlaps the men's version of March Madness on seven days, and some are wondering if it could steal viewership from the men's event.
High interest in several star players is expected to drive strong viewership of the women's tournament. Iowa's Clark, the all-time leading scorer in NCAA Division I history, is drawing significant attention. Additionally, defending champion LSU is led by Southeastern Conference Player of the Year Angel Reese, while USC's JuJu Watkins and Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo were First Team All-Americans as freshmen.
In terms of team positioning, the South Carolina Gamecocks are undefeated at 32-0 heading into the tournament, and Iowa and LSU could meet in an Elite 8 encounter.
CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus, who is retiring after The Masters, said on a recent call with reporters that CBS Sports is committed to women's sports overall, with coverage of the NWSL and other properties. Paramount Global's CBS Sports and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.'s TNT Sports co-hold the rights to the men's March Madness event. McManus noted that those watching the men's tournament on CBS (US), TBS (US), TNT (US) and truTV (US) will see promos for the women's event.
"When things go well for women's basketball ... that's good for the men's game, also," the CBS executive said.