March Madness: Nike, Jordan top Under Armour and Adidas in NCAA tournament field

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March Madness has arrived, and the NCAA Men's Division I basketball tournament is set to begin this week with the First Four games on Tuesday and Wednesday ahead of the Round of 64 games on Thursday and Friday.

While college athletes will be competing on the hardwood, apparel brands that sponsor their teams are competing for exposure and hoping the teams they are backing make deep runs in the tournament.

Four athletic brands will have teams they sponsor in this year's NCAA tournament field: Nike, Jordan (which is a brand within Nike), Adidas and Under Armour. Of the 68 teams in the 2024 tournament field, Nike sponsors 36 while another six wear Jordan, with Under Armour 16 and Adidas sponsoring 10.

Here is a look at which apparel brands are sponsoring the teams that will determine whether your bracket is busted this year.

The defending champion UConn Huskies are the No. 1 overall seed in the 2024 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images / Getty Images)

2024 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT SELECTIONS REVEALED

Nike

Oregon-headquartered Nike leads the way with 36 teams in this year's field, including several favorites. The lineup includes a pair of No. 1 seeds: the defending NCAA champion UConn Huskies, as well as the Purdue Boilermakers, who are led by reigning national player of the year Zach Edey. It also features a trio of No. 2 seeds – the Arizona Wildcats, Iowa State Cyclones and Tennessee Volunteers.

All four of the No. 3 seeds are also Nike programs, including the Kentucky Wildcats, Baylor Bears, Illinois Fighting Illini and the Creighton Bluejays. They are joined by a pair of No. 4 seeds, the Duke Blue Devils and Alabama Crimson Tide, plus the No. 5 seed Gonzaga Bulldogs and No. 6 seeds BYU Cougars and Clemson Tigers.

Nike's dominance extends to the middle- and lower-seeded teams looking to pull off upsets and make deep tournament runs, including:

No. 7 seeds Washington State Cougars, Dayton Flyers and Texas Longhorns
No. 8 seed Utah State Aggies
No. 9 seeds Michigan State Spartans and TCU Horned Frogs
No. 10 seeds Boise State Broncos, Colorado Buffaloes, and Virginia Cavaliers
No. 11 seeds Oregon Ducks, New Mexico Lobos and Duquesne Dukes
No. 12 seeds Grand Canyon Antelopes and James Madison Dukes
No. 13 seeds Vermont Catamounts and Samford Bulldogs
No. 14 seeds Akron Zips and Oakland Grizzlies
No. 15 seeds Long Beach State 49ers and Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
No. 16 seeds Stetson Hatters and Longwood Lancers

Zach Edey, #15 of the Purdue Boilermakers, dribbles the ball against Steven Crowl, #22 of the Wisconsin Badgers, in the second half at Target Center in the Semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament on March 16, 2024 in Minneapolis. The Badgers defeated the Boilermakers 76-75 in overtime. | Getty Images

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Jordan

Nike's Jordan Brand – named after basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan who still retains a percentage stake in the brand – sponsors six teams in this year's tournament. That list features three of the top eight seeds in the field, including Jordan's alma mater North Carolina.

No. 1 seeds Houston Cougars and North Carolina Tar Heels
No. 2 seed Marquette Golden Eagles
No. 5 seed San Diego State Aztecs
No. 7 seed Florida Gators
No. 16 seed Howard Bison

North Carolina Tar Heels forward Armando Bacot, #5, dunks the ball in action against the Pittsburgh Panthers in the first game of the ACC Tournament Semi Final on March 15, 2024 at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. | Getty Images

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
NKE	NIKE INC.	76.50	-0.73	-0.95%
UA	UNDER ARMOUR INC.	6.60	-0.05	-0.75%
ADDYY	ADIDAS AG	127.59	-1.98	-1.53%

Under Armour

Maryland-headquartered Under Armour will sponsor 16 teams in this year's tournament, led by the No. 4 seed Auburn Tigers, who won the SEC tournament championship.

Also featuring prominently in Under Armour's lineup are the No. 5 seed Saint Mary's Gaels, who won the WCC's regular season and tournament championships, and the No. 5 seed Wisconsin Badgers. Other Under Armour branded programs competing in this year's tournament include:

No. 6 seeds South Carolina Gamecocks and Texas Tech Red Raiders
No. 9 seed Northwestern Wildcats
No. 10 seed Colorado State Rams
No. 12 seeds UAB Blazers and McNeese State Cowboys
No. 13 seeds Charleston Cougars and Yale Bulldogs
No. 14 seeds Colgate Raiders and Morehead State Eagles
No. 15 seed South Dakota State Jackrabbits
No. 16 seeds Montana State Bobcats and Wagner Seahawks

Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl celebrates with Johni Broome, #4, during the win against the Florida Gators in the championship game of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 17, 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee. | Getty Images

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Adidas

Ten teams in this year's tournament field are sponsored by apparel giant Adidas, which has its global headquarters in Germany and a North American headquarters in Oregon. Adidas' lineup is led by the No. 4 seed Kansas Jayhawks and includes the following brands.

No. 8 seeds Florida Atlantic Owls, Mississippi State Bulldogs and Nebraska Cornhuskers
No. 9 seed Texas A&M Aggies
No. 10 seeds Drake Bulldogs and Nevada Wolfpack
No. 11 seed North Carolina State Wolfpack
No. 15 seed Saint Peter's Peacocks
No. 16 seed Grambling State Tigers

Keisei Tominaga, #30 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, shoots over Zach Edey, #15 of the Purdue Boilermakers, in the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Jan. 9, 2024, in Lincoln, Nebraska. | Getty Images

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