Bracketology: Your Guide to Finding the Right Bracket Challenge

Bracketology is defined as “the activity of predicting the participants in and outcomes of the games in a sports tournament, especially the NCAA college basketball tournament.” Yet, for all the scientific methodology some put behind their selections, there are always a number of surprise upsets and random-selection luck. By now, you’re ready to build the perfect bracket — but on which platform? And what’s the best bracket site for joining a public competition versus creating an office group?

Men’s and Women’s Brackets – ESPN’s Bracket Challenge

Pros:

• User-friendly and easy to use
• Fill out both men’s and women’s tournament brackets
• Each matchup has a stats analysis to compare team stats
• Ability to play on the general leaderboard or within personal groups
• Play against celebrity brackets

Cons:

• Other platforms offer more advanced resources/capabilities

Good for Second Chances – CBS Sports’ Bracket Challenge

Deadline: The start date of each round

Pros:

• Unique structure lets you create your bracket round by round, so even if you bust out initially, you get a second chance.
• Full bracket features ‘matchup analysis’ to compare teams
• Create up to three brackets to increase your chances
• Run your own pool to compete against friends, co-workers, etc
• A lot of resources for information, tips and more
• The prize is an all-expense paid trip to the 2019 Final Four

Cons:

• No cash prizes

• Round-by-round style is competitive and easy but not for particularly forgetful players or those not keeping up with all the action

Experience Recommended – Bleacher Report’s Bracket Challenge

Pros:

• Great for big college basketball fans and repeat users.
• Compete within the entire contest or create ‘leagues’ to compete against friends, etc.
• Matchup analysis includes relevant stats and is easy to read.
• Create up to five brackets for the competition.

Cons:

• Less user-friendly for beginners or new fans.
• No resources or outside information for players.
• Matchup analysis is there but includes fewer stats than their competitors.

Good for Beginners: CBS Local Bracket Challenge

Pros:

• The system is straightforward and simple to use for beginners or casual players
• Simple to use for beginners and first-time players
• Mobile-friendly play
• Hover over teams for stats comparison for each matchup during bracket selection
• Join private groups to compete against friends or play to compete against the nation
• $5000 Amex gift card for the top winner with $100 gift cards for each round’s winner

Cons:

• Lacks deeper resources and references or tips for players
• No way to create public groups

There is no such thing as the wrong platform for your bracket challenge, but shopping around can help ensure you’re getting the right features and experience to make this season as fun as possible.

Just don’t miss the lock-in deadlines!

The content is featured on https://www.directv.com/insider/ is editorial content brought to you by DIRECTV. While some of the programming discussed may now or in the future be available affiliates distribution services, the companies and persons discussed and depicted, and the authors and publishers of licensed content, are not necessarily associated with and do not necessarily endorse DIRECTV. When you click on ads on this site you may be taken to DIRECTV marketing pages that display advertising content. Content sponsored or co-created by programmers is identified as "Sponsored Content" or "Promoted Content."