COVID-19: public opinion on canceling March Madness as of March 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic that spread across the world at the beginning of 2020 was not only a big threat to public health, but also to the entire sports industry. Several professional sports leagues, including the NBA and NHL, as well as most professional soccer leagues in Europe, took the decision to postpone or suspend their seasons in order to mitigate the spread of the disease. The NCAA, the organization in charge of college sports, also canceled its remaining spring and winter championships, including the March Madness basketball tournament. In a March 2020 survey, 13 percent of respondents strongly agreed with the sentiment that the NCAA was overreacting by suspending its championships due to the pandemic.
