2024 March Madness: Men’s Bets Double Women’s, Yet Women’s Tournament Sees 22.01x Growth

March Madness 2024 saw a shift in betting behavior, with the men’s tournament still dominating bet volume while the women’s tournament experienced explosive betting growth. This presents both a challenge and an opportunity for operators: targeting long-term, high-value players while avoiding one-and-done bettors. By understanding these trends, operators can optimize campaigns for sustained growth and maximize lifetime player value for March Madness 2025.

• Surge in betting on women’s games: The women’s tournament saw an explosive increase in betting activity, with bets rising 22.01 times on average in the National Championship compared to the Round of 64. This highlights the growing interest in women’s sports. Operators should capitalize on this emerging trend by focusing on the target audience for women’s games.
• Decreased bet amount in men’s games: As the men’s tournament progressed, the average bet amount steadily decreased, reaching its lowest point in the National Championship. This signals there are likely more casual bettors in the championship game who are not good prospects to become a VIP player.
• Strategic segmentation and retention: Understanding the behaviors of bettors during March Madness—especially in terms of value and engagement—is key. Operators should use player data to segment their audience effectively, retain valuable bettors, and target the right campaigns to maximize long-term growth.

March Madness 2024 has come and gone, but the data it generated still provides a blueprint for iGaming operators as they approach March Madness 2025.

Optimove Insights analyzed the betting behavior of 4,090,119 players who placed bets on both men’s and women’s 2024 March Madness tournaments. This analysis covers all six rounds of the tournaments: Round of 64, Round of 32, Sweet 16, Elite 8, Final 4, and the Championship games.

One of the most striking findings was the massive increase in betting activity on women’s games as the tournament progressed. By the time the National Championship game rolled around, the number of bets on women’s games had skyrocketed, with 22.01 times more bets placed compared to the Round of 64. While this increase in interest can partly be attributed to a phenomenon like Caitlin Clark, we expect this trend to continue growing in the coming years, driven by stars such as Paige Bueckers and Juju Watkins.

Men's betting still dominates, while women's betting is emerging

Across all rounds, we found that for every bettor placing a wager on a women’s game, there were 2.29 bettors on a men’s game. And when it came to the total number of bets placed, the difference was even more striking: for every bet during the women’s season, there were 9.72 bets on a men’s game on average.

The betting activity in the men’s tournament increased from the first round and remained steady until the Championship game. For example, when we compare the average number of bets in a game during the Round of 64 to those placed during the National Championship game.

The Men's March Madness is well-established as a premier sporting event. It is essentially like the NBA finals, Super Bowl, and World Series. It is an end-of-season culminating event. Seeing a steady interest without a crescendo peak at the Championship game is expected.

In contrast, the women’s tournament has not been established over the years as a premier sporting event. 2024 was a banner year, with a sharp and steady rise in betting activity.

Starting from the Round of 64, the average number of bets skyrocketed, reaching an impressive 22.01 times more bets on average by the National Championship game. This sharp increase reflects the growing attention on women’s games and is likely to continue as the sport gains more prominence. This fever pitch interest was due to Caitlin Clark. In 2025, it is likely that the women's tournament will start with a higher level of interest and not rise as rapidly to the final game. However, sportsbook operators should be ready for increased interest overall.

Average Bet Amount in Men’s Games Decreases Over Time

As the men’s tournament progressed, there was a noticeable decrease in the average bet amount placed. By the time the National Championship game came around, the average bet was just 30% of what it was during the Round of 64. This is consistent with the decline in the average bet amount we see at other major sporting events, such as the Super Bowl.

Here's how the average bet amount compared to the baseline throughout the tournament:

• Round of 64 – Baseline (100%)
• Round of 32 – 88% of baseline
• Sweet 16 – 60% of baseline
• Elite Eight – 52% of baseline
• Final Four – 34% of baseline
• National Championship – 30% of baseline

Interestingly, there was no significant fluctuation in the wager amounts on the women’s games during the tournament.

Higher Average Bets on Men’s Games - But the Gap Narrowed Over Time

Throughout all rounds, the average bet in men’s games was consistently higher than in women’s games. As the average bet sizes in men’s games decreased over the rounds, the gap in the average bet amount between the two tournaments also narrowed. Here’s a breakdown of the difference:

• Round of 64: For every $1 bet on a women’s game, the average bet on a men’s game was $2.85 higher.
• Round of 32: For every $1 bet on a women’s game, the average bet on a men’s game was $2.13 higher.
• Sweet 16: For every $1 bet on a women’s game, the average bet on a men’s game was $1.04 higher.
• Elite Eight: For every $1 bet on a women’s game, the average bet on a men’s game was $0.84 higher.
• Final Four: For every $1 bet on a women’s game, the average bet on a men’s game was $0.41 higher.
• National Championship: The gap was much smaller by the National Championship, with men’s games averaging just $0.20 more per bet than women’s games.

Recommendations for sportsbook operators for March Madness 2025

• Capitalize on Women’s Sports Growth: Focus on attracting high-value bettors in the growing women’s sports market. Create targeted campaigns, promotions, and personalized content to build loyalty as stars like Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers, and Juju Watkins drive interest. See if there's an opportunity to create interest in the WNBA, which immediately follows March Madness.
• Segment and Retain Players Based on Behavior: Segment players by betting behavior, identifying long-term VIP bettors. Nurture them with exclusive offers, while being careful in marketing to casual bettors. Some casual bettors may offer no opportunity to become a valuable player.
• Optimize for Long-Term Growth: Analyze bettors’ behaviors across multiple events and tailor campaigns for both peak and off-season periods to foster long-lasting relationships beyond March Madness, as mentioned in the WBNA example above.
• Maximize Lifetime Value with Engaging Content: Develop cross-promotional content and interactive experiences, like live betting and real-time updates, for both men’s and women’s games. Engaging content will enhance player satisfaction and retention, boosting lifetime value.

In Summary

March Madness 2024 can be a blueprint for sportsbook operators as we head into the 2025 tournaments.  2024 saw significant shifts in betting behavior, with men's bets still dominating volume while the women's tournament experienced a 22.01x surge in betting activity. Operators should leverage this growing interest in women’s sports by targeting high-value bettors, segmenting based on behavior, and using personalized marketing to maximize long-term player value. By understanding these trends, sportsbooks can optimize campaigns for sustained growth and stronger retention.

For a deeper dive into how Optimove can help you leverage these and other insights, contact us to request a demo.