With NCAA tournament competition in full swing, it has led some of the American population to turn their attention to betting on the big games. As the 2026 NCAA March Madness tournament has begun, there has been a rift between the association and a popular sportsbook named DraftKings.
Consequently, announced publicly on Friday, the NCAA would release a statement saying how they “filed a complaint” against DraftKings on the basis of trademark infringement.
“The NCAA today filed a complaint in federal court in Indianapolis against DraftKings seeking an emergency temporary restraining order stopping the company from using the NCAA's federally registered trademarks MARCH MADNESS®, FINAL FOUR®, ELITE EIGHT® and SWEET SIXTEEN® — or any confusingly similar variation thereof — in connection with DraftKings' sports wagering products, promotional campaigns and marketing activities,” the statement by the NCAA read.
NCAA stands its ground against sportsbooks
With the NCAA standing their ground on their thoughts of sports betting, they would repeat and double down on the point that they don't want parts of their brand, such as student-athletes, to be “associated” with sports betting.
“The NCAA said the company's unauthorized use of its trademarks is flatly contrary to one of the Association's most deeply held institutional values: that sports betting must not be associated with, endorsed by, or linked to NCAA championships or the student-athletes who compete in them,” the statement read.
Seeing how there are professional leagues such as the NFL, MLB, NBA, and others that have partnered with sports betting avenues, the NCAA emphasizes how they don't “have any commercial relationships with any sportsbooks.”
“The NCAA does not have any commercial relationships with any sportsbooks of any kind and continues to uphold a strict prohibition on advertising and sponsorships associated with betting. The NCAA says filing this complaint is a crucial step in furthering its mission to protect the integrity of competition and student-athlete well-being from the harms of sports betting,” the statement continued.
At any rate, it remains to be seen where this lawsuit takes the NCAA and DraftKings.
