Understand the Scoring System
Know how many points each tournament round is worth before making your selections.
Later-round scoring can make deep tournament predictions particularly important.
Contest Guide
Guide to Bracket Contests
Build Your Bracket. Pick Your Champion.
What Is a Bracket Contest?
A bracket contest is a sports prediction competition where players predict how a tournament will progress from the opening rounds through the championship.
Players complete a tournament bracket by selecting which teams or competitors they believe will advance from each matchup. Those selections continue through successive rounds until the player chooses an eventual tournament champion.
At BracketContest, players can join available bracket contests, make their selections before the contest deadline, follow the tournament as it unfolds, earn points for correct selections, and compete against other players on the contest leaderboard.
Bracket contests are especially popular during March Madness and college basketball, but the bracket format can be used for many sports and tournament-style competitions.
How Do Bracket Contests Work?
Playing a bracket contest involves predicting the outcome of an entire tournament rather than a single game.
Choose a Bracket Contest
Select an available bracket contest from BracketContest.
Before entering, review the tournament, entry requirements, scoring system, contest deadline, prizes, and applicable rules.
Build Your Bracket
Review the opening-round matchups and select the team or competitor you believe will advance from each matchup.
Your selections determine the teams or competitors appearing in the later rounds of your bracket.
Continue making selections through each round until your bracket is complete.
Pick Your Champion
The final selection on your bracket is the team or competitor you predict will win the tournament.
Because later tournament rounds generally carry greater scoring value, your championship selection can have a significant effect on your final contest score.
Submit Your Bracket
Complete and review all required selections before the contest deadline.
Once the applicable contest begins and entries are locked, your bracket selections cannot be changed.
Follow the Tournament
As actual tournament games are completed, your bracket is compared with the official results.
Correct selections earn points according to the scoring system established for that contest.
Follow the Leaderboard
BracketContest tracks the results and updates contest standings as the tournament progresses.
Players can follow their points and see how they compare with other participants.
Final Results
Once the tournament concludes and results become official, final contest standings are determined.
Eligible prizes are distributed according to the published rules and prize structure for that contest.
How Does Bracket Scoring Work?
BracketContest scoring can vary depending on the tournament and individual contest.
Bracket contests generally use graduated scoring, where correct predictions become more valuable as the tournament progresses.
Early-round selections may receive fewer points, while later-round selections receive progressively more points.
Correctly predicting the tournament champion generally represents one of the most valuable selections on the bracket.
This scoring approach rewards players who successfully identify teams capable of advancing deep into the tournament.
Because scoring systems can vary, players should always review the scoring rules for the individual contest before completing their bracket.
Why Later-Round Picks Matter
A tournament bracket is interconnected.
When you select a team to advance from an early-round matchup, that team becomes part of your predictions for later rounds.
If that team is eliminated earlier than you predicted, it can affect more than one selection on your bracket.
For example, if you select a team to reach the championship game but that team loses in an early round, you can no longer earn points for that team in the later rounds you predicted.
That is one of the strategic challenges that makes bracket contests different from simply predicting individual games.
What Happens When Players Tie?
BracketContest does not require a separate tiebreaker to determine prize distribution when players finish with identical contest scores.
Instead, the prize percentages for the positions occupied by the tied players are combined and divided equally among those players.
Assume a contest awards:
- 1st Place — 50%
- 2nd Place — 30%
- 3rd Place — 15%
- 4th Place — 5%
If three players tie for first, they occupy the first three prize positions.
The applicable prizes are combined:
50% + 30% + 15% = 95%
The 95% is divided equally among the three tied players:
31.67% each, approximately.
If five players tied for fourth place, they would share the 5% fourth-place allocation equally.
Each player would receive:
1%
The specific prize structure for each contest is displayed in the applicable contest rules.
Free-to-Play Bracket Contests
BracketContest can offer free-to-play bracket contests using Bracket Contest Points, or BCP.
Eligible free contests allow players to use BCP to enter and compete according to the rules established for that particular contest.
BCP are part of the BracketContest rewards ecosystem and can be used according to the applicable BCP program rules.
Paid-Entry Bracket Contests
BracketContest can also offer paid-entry bracket contests where permitted.
For applicable paid contests, players pay the displayed entry amount and compete for the contest's available prize pool.
Entry amounts, prize structures, management fees, eligibility requirements, and jurisdictional restrictions are displayed before participation.
March Madness Bracket Contests
One of the Most Popular Bracket Events in Sports
The NCAA men's and women's college basketball tournaments have helped make bracket contests a major part of American sports culture.
During March Madness, players attempt to predict which college basketball teams will advance through each tournament round and ultimately become national champion.
A March Madness bracket requires players to make predictions across the tournament rather than simply selecting a champion.
As the tournament progresses, every upset can change the bracket standings.
BracketContest can provide March Madness contests, scoring information, tournament guides, and related college basketball information during the tournament season.
How to Approach a Bracket Contest
There is no method that guarantees a winning bracket. Sports tournaments contain uncertainty and unexpected results.
However, understanding the contest format can help players make more informed selections.
Research the Teams
Players may consider factors such as:
- Team performance
- Tournament seeding
- Recent results
- Player availability
- Matchups
- Offensive and defensive performance
- Sports odds and market information
No single factor determines the outcome of a sporting event.
Consider the Entire Bracket
Don't evaluate every matchup in isolation.
A selection in the first round can affect several later-round predictions.
Think about where you expect each team to finish before completing the entire bracket.
Evaluate Potential Upsets
Tournament upsets are part of bracket competition.
Selecting an underdog that advances can benefit a bracket when the prediction is correct, but an incorrect upset selection may eliminate opportunities to earn points from the expected winner in later rounds.
Pay Attention to Your Champion
Your championship selection can affect multiple late-round predictions and potentially significant scoring opportunities.
Review Everything Before the Deadline
Check your bracket before submitting it.
Make sure every required matchup has a selection and confirm your predicted champion.
Once the contest locks, selections cannot be changed.
Bracket Contests and Sports Odds
Sports odds can be one research tool when evaluating tournament matchups.
Odds can provide information about how betting markets currently evaluate the relative likelihood of different game outcomes.
They do not guarantee which team will win.
BracketContest provides sports odds information for eligible events, allowing players to research matchups while completing their contest selections.
Bracket Contest vs. Pick'em Contest
Although both involve sports predictions, they work differently.
A Bracket Contest requires you to predict how competitors will advance through an interconnected tournament.
A Pick'em Contest generally asks you to make selections from a group of individual games or matchups.
In a bracket, an incorrect early-round prediction can affect your potential later-round selections.
In Pick'em, selections are generally evaluated individually according to the rules of that particular contest.
Bracket Contest vs. Survivor Contest
A Bracket Contest involves predicting the progression of an entire tournament.
A Survivor Contest focuses on making qualifying selections from one contest period to the next while remaining eligible to continue.
BracketContest offers different Survivor formats, including use-a-team-once, repeat-team, and Against the Spread contests.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bracket Contests
What is a bracket contest?
A bracket contest is a sports prediction competition where players predict which teams or competitors will advance through the rounds of a tournament and ultimately win the championship.
How do I play a bracket contest?
Choose an available contest, make your selections for each tournament matchup, select your predicted champion, submit the completed bracket before the deadline, and earn points as your correct predictions are determined.
How does bracket contest scoring work?
Scoring varies by contest. BracketContest can use graduated scoring where later-round correct selections are worth more points than earlier-round selections. The exact scoring system is displayed in the individual contest rules.
Can I change my bracket after the contest begins?
No. Once the applicable contest deadline passes and brackets are locked, selections cannot be changed.
What happens if players tie?
The prize percentages associated with the positions occupied by the tied players are combined and divided equally among those players according to BracketContest contest rules.
Do I have to correctly predict every game to win?
No. Contest standings are determined by the scoring system for that particular bracket. Players can make incorrect selections and still remain competitive depending on the results of the tournament and the performance of other entries.
What is a March Madness bracket?
A March Madness bracket is a tournament bracket where players predict which college basketball teams will advance through the NCAA tournament and ultimately win the national championship.
Does BracketContest offer free bracket contests?
BracketContest can offer free-to-play contests using BCP as well as paid-entry contests where permitted. Availability varies by event, contest, eligibility, and jurisdiction.
Where can I find available bracket contests?
Visit the BracketContest contest listings to see currently available bracket competitions.
Ready to Build Your Bracket?
Choose an available tournament, make your predictions, select your champion, and follow your bracket throughout the competition.