NCAA Tournament Odds and Predictions 2026: Blue Devils Open as Tournament Favorites

• The defending national champion Florida Gators opened at +2500 to repeat as champions in 2026.

• Runner-up Houston opened with the second-shortest odds at +1200.

•  Of the last ten tournaments, the team that opened as the betting favorite to win the national championship did not go on to win it.

Sportsbooks will often have national championship odds posted for one season before the current one finishes, giving bettors a chance to bet on NCAA Tournament odds year-round. On this page, we’ll keep you up to date with the odds for the top contenders, the best sportsbooks for betting on them, how to read those odds, and so much more!

2026 NCAA Tournament Odds

Here are the odds for the top 15 contenders listed at FanDuel Sportsbook. To place a bet, click on the words ‘Bet Here’ located below the team’s odds. Bettors new to FanDuel can claim the following welcome offer for signing up: Bet $5, Get $250 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins.

NCAA Tournament Predictions

With the number of players entering the NBA Draft or transfer portal every year, the landscape can go through drastic changes from one year to the next. At the same time, there are programs fans can often count on being in national championship conversations.

Why? Because they recruit elite players every year, and many of the best players in the country enter the transfer portal, hoping to get picked up by a perennial contender. That is why Duke opened as the favorite, and why many teams listed at the top of betting boards have the odds they have.

Will Duke, Houston,  Texas Tech, Connecticut, Louisville, St. John’s, or Purdue win it all? We’ll have to wait and see, but chances are good they’ll all be in contention, which makes them a decent bet.

NCAA Tournament Winner Pick – Houston

Houston will have some personnel losses to deal with during the offseason. But with the elite class he has coming in and at least one key portal addition, there is no reason to think Kelvin Sampson will not have this group playing elite basketball once again.

Bet $5 at FanDuel, Get $250 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins

How to Bet on the NCAA Tournament

There are several ways in which you can bet on the NCAA Tournament, depending on the time of year. Futures odds for the next national championship are often posted before or shortly after the current championship is decided.

During the season, bettors can often find ‘odds to make the Final Four’ and/or ‘to make the NCAA Tournament.’ Once the Tournament field is set, sportsbooks will often have Tournament props available as well as betting lines for games and full prop menus.

To actually bet on the NCAA Tournament, bettors will need to sign up for an account with one or more online sportsbooks, make a deposit into said account, locate the market they want to put money on, and place their bet.

How to Read NCAA Tournament Odds

Futures odds and odds for player/tournament/game props will consist of at least three numbers. Those numbers will have either a + or – sign preceding it. If the numbers have a – sign, then the outcome in question is expected to happen and has at least a 50% chance of winning.

But if the number comes with a + sign, then the chances of the outcome in question are less than 50%. However, that is also why such markets give you a chance to win more. For example, FanDuel has Duke listed at +1000. That means a $100 wager will result in an $1100 payday, your stake ($100) plus $1000 in winnings.

However, if the odds have a – sign, the number listed is what you will need to risk in order to win $100. For example, heading into the 2025 National Championship Game, Florida’s odds were -115. In order to win $100 betting on the Gators to win, you’d have needed to risk $115.

Where to Bet on the NCAA Tournament Winner

We’ve talked about the odds of winning the national championship for the top contenders, how to read those odds, and the different ways in which you can bet on NCAA Tournament odds. So, let’s talk about where you can bet on a national title winner.

When it comes to the many online sportsbooks on the market, I’d have to say FanDuel Sportsbook is my all-around favorite. There are aspects of it that I like better with other apps, but there is only one thing I don’t like (you have to win your first bet to claim the welcome offer): Bet $5, Get $250 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins

The odds are competitive, the app is simple, easy to use, and reliable, there are plenty of banking options, and it's available in many of the jurisdictions where online sports betting is legal. As far as welcome promos go, I’m a big fan of bonus bets (not a fan of bet insurance).

BetMGM would be a close second for the player props, competitive odds, banking options, and availability. As for a third, I’d have to say Caesars Sportsbook for many of the same reasons as FanDuel and BetMGM.

NCAA Tournament Winner History

The NCAA Tournament has grown in size over the years, consisting of as few as eight teams and as many as 53 since the Tournament’s inception in 1939, until the field expanded to 64 in 1985. With the creation of the First Four in 2011, the field expanded to 68 teams.

Including the first NCAA Tournament champion in 1939 (Oregon), 37 programs have won the national championship. The following list contains the last 15 winners: