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The stage is set for the Big Dance, and schools have the opportunity to bring home more than a championship. The NCAA “unit” system for men’s and women’s basketball pays out hundreds of millions of dollars, combined, to conferences based on how far their teams advance.

Plus, the World Baseball Classic has proven itself as a marquee event for baseball fans, who are selling out the normally staid loanDepot Park.

—Amanda Christovich and Eric Fisher

• The MLB Players Association said it’s prepared for upcoming labor talks, even with a recent change in union leadership. Read the story.

• Cam Young took home $4.5M for winning the Players Championship, the largest individual prize in the PGA Tour’s regular season. Read the story.

• Boston Legacy FC set a new NWSL attendance record for an inaugural home opener—but the record won’t stand for long. Read the story.

• Student athletes may now receive money from their schools, but they aren’t recognized as employees. A former NLRB exec told FOS that should change. Read the story.

How Conferences Cash In on March Madness

The NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments can earn conferences and their schools millions through the “units program,” a prize pool paying out hundreds of millions of dollars based on how far teams advance. 

This year, the men’s tournament will offer more than $220 million, while the women’s tournament will offer about $20 million. 

Here’s how it works: Each conference receives a payment for its automatic qualifier, or conference tournament champion. Then, the “units,” or slices of the overall prize pool are awarded to the conference of each team that receives an at-large bid. All schools earn an additional unit for each round they advance. New this year: Schools will earn one unit for advancing to the championship game, and another for winning the title. 

Men’s Tournament Units

Last year, the SEC earned a record $26 million on Selection Sunday when it sent 14 teams (13 of which were at-large programs) to the men’s Big Dance. While the SEC is sending fewer programs this year, it still ranks at the top of all conferences in both bids and earnings with 10 overall schools, followed by the Big Ten with 9, and the Big 12 and the ACC with 8 each.

However, conferences don’t get that money up-front—they’re paid out on a six-year rolling basis. What’s more, each conference has a different way of divvying up the payouts. The ACC, for example, has promised to give all the money to the specific schools that earn them, while other conferences divide them equally among all schools, even those that don’t make the tournament. 

Women’s Tournament Units

After the NCAA signed a new and more lucrative media rights deal, the NCAA began offering units for  the women’s basketball tournament in 2025. The program was heralded by coaches as the most important step in the battle for equity in college basketball.

For the women’s tournament, the unit distribution rules are the same, though the money is paid out on a three-year rolling basis, rather than a six-year basis. The pool is also smaller than the men’s. However, the percentage of the media rights deal offered to the women as units is the same percentage as that offered to the men’s tournament when their media deal started: 26%.

For the women’s tournament, the Big Ten is sending the most programs with 12, led by overall No. 2 seed UCLA. The SEC follows with 10, the ACC with 9, and the Big 12 with 8.

Around the Dial

• Nearly one year after Shannon Sharpe first left ESPN following a since-settled lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault, Stephen A. Smith wants to reunite with his former First Take cohost. “I got nothing but love for him. I wish I had him back,” Smith said of Sharpe on his SiriusXM show, according to Awful Announcing.

• Speaking of Smith, the ESPN star is once again weighing in on his potential future in politics. Appearing on the debut episode of Sean Hannity’s new podcast, Smith made it clear he won’t run for president if it means giving up any of his sizable income.

• NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero did not hold back on the Ravens pulling out of their proposed blockbuster trade with the Raiders for pass-rusher Maxx Crosby. “One GM summarized the feelings around the league: ‘This is very much bullshit on Baltimore’s part,’” Pelissero wrote on X/Twitter.

• The NFL is exploring adding a Thanksgiving Eve game, which could debut as early as the 2026 season, Adam Schefter reports.

• Former LSU stars Jarvis Landry and Leonard Fournette are launching a new podcast, 4th and South, with The Volume and Hard Rock Bet.

One Big Fig

142%

That’s the strong rise in average viewership for the World Baseball Classic through Sunday’s action across Fox Sports, FS1, and FS2 compared with the most recent WBC in 2023. However, Fox is now surely hopeful Team USA won’t be eliminated following its stunning 8–6 loss to Italy on Tuesday night.

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