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NCAA's March Madness, Brackets Pull In More Than Just Fans

Infographic: The NCAA men's basketball tournament begins today and in the past decade it has grown into a huge moneymaker.
Image: Iowa v Tennessee
Jordan McRae #52 of the Tennessee Volunteers drives to the basket against the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first round of the 2014 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 19, 2014 in Dayton, Ohio. Gregory Shamus / Getty Images

The NCAA tournament begins at 12:15pm today as 64 teams will compete to win the NCAA Championship. In the last decade, the NCAA men’s basketball tournament edges out pro-football for the honor of most lucrative post-season sports franchise as measured by national TV ad revenue, according to a report from Kantar Media. With $1.15 billion of ad spending from 65 games the 2013 tournament beat the 11-game NFL playoffs by over $50 million and the NBA post-season by $223 million.