COVID-19: public awareness about the cancelation of March Madness as of March 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic that spread across the world at the beginning of 2020 was not only a big threat to public health, but also to the entire sports industry. The NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, also known as March Madness, is an annual knockout tournament contested between college teams. For the first time since its inception in 1939, March Madness was canceled in 2020 to stem the spread of the coronavirus. This unprecedented move was covered extensively in the media with ramifications for both players and fans alike. In a March 2020 survey, 33 percent of respondents stated that they had seen and heard a lot about the March Madness tournament being canceled.