It’s March Madness for some, but for others it’s the Sicko Olympics.
That’s right. While some of us enjoy consuming the NCAA Tournament at a leisurely pace, perhaps flipping around to whichever game is most interesting, taking a break for dinner, maybe even going on an evening stroll, others are locked into the action morning, noon, and night.
And those among us who treat March Madness as a sport unto itself are in a truly elite category.
According to Fox Sports analytics guru Michael Mulvihill, citing data from audience measurement firm Nielsen, approximately 3,000 people have watched at least one minute of all 48 NCAA men’s basketball tournament games played so far.
According to Nielsen data, approximately 3000 people watched at least one minute of all 48 March Madness first and second round games.
Congratulations to these American heroes.
— Michael Mulvihill (@mulvihill79) March 26, 2025
While many of us, this writer included, certainly aspire to it, it’s another thing to actually do it.
Per Nielsen, the first two rounds of this year’s tournament have set a viewership record. CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV are averaging a combined 9.4 million viewers per window through the tournament’s first weekend, a 32-year high. In other words, about .0003% of the tournament audience at any given time last weekend would tune into every game.
We’re talking about the elite of the elite here.
As Mulvihill said, “Congratulations to these American heroes.”
