March Madness Is Back—And It’s About to Hit Workplace Productivity Hard

Leaning into the NCAA tournament excitement can lift morale and strengthen team culture.

BY BRUCE CRUMLEY @BRUCEC_INC

Illustration: Inc.; Photos: Getty Images

The nation’s annual celebration of college basketball is underway, and employers would be wise to anticipate how all that March Madness is likely to affect their workplaces. The biggest expected impact of employee fascination with National Collegiate Athletic Association hoops is the yearly dip in staff productivity—and rise in abruptly requested illness or vacation leave—as workers tune in to the action during the week.

March Madness 2026 kicked off in earnest on Tuesday, and will continue over 67 games until the Final Four on April 4 and 6. That means workplace fans of college basketball are more than likely already sneaking peeks at their favorite teams, with a lot more of that viewing adding up over the next three weeks. Recent survey results offer an idea of just how much work time will be diverted to watching three pointers and dunks.

Sports betting news site Action Network polled 3,000 U.S. employees, and found a quarter admitted watching tournament games during work hours. “Fans spend an average of 1.5 hours per day following the tournament,” it reported, “with roughly one-third spending two hours or more tracking scores and brackets.”

An additional survey by fantasy sports community Rotogrinder.com of 850 platform users determined 50 percent of respondents watch at least an hour of the tournament on the job each week. Male workers reported dedicating an average of two weekly hours to taking in March Madness games at work, with women participants tuning in around 1.42 on-the-clock hours.

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But that’s not the only way the tournament affects staff activity.

Rotogrinder.com found 53 percent of respondents saying they “plan to take at least one day off work to watch the tournament this year.” Just over 20 percent of Action Networks’ poll participants admitted “they’ve taken a vacation day just to watch games” in past years.” An additional 11 percent copped to having called in sick to take in action at home.

How much will all that workweek attention to NCAA basketball cost employers in lost productivity? According to Action Network’s estimate, it could add up to $13.1 billion, or $107.22 per hour for each of the 11.6 million employees it expects to watch play on the job.

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