Degree and Dick’s are going all in on the March Madness women’s tournament.

Degree and Dick’s are going all-in on the March Madness women’s tournament. This year, the NCAA will allow the women’s tournament to use March Madness branding after racking up record viewership at last year’s games. To promote this year’s NCAA women’s tournament, Degree is launching the “Bracket Gap Challenge” with WNBA star Candace Parker, encouraging fans to fill out a women’s bracket via BracketGapChallenge.com. One participant will be randomly selected to receive $25,000, while a $75,000 donation will be given to a women’s athletic program of their choice. Meanwhile, Dick’s Sporting Goods is partnering with Just Women’s Sports on a Bracket Challenge where fans can register their women’s tournament bracket for a chance to win a $150,00 first place prize, or $250 Dick’s gift cards if they place second through eleventh place. With March Madness largely focused on the men’s tournament each year, Degree created the “Bracket Gap Challenge” as an extension of its #BreakingLimits NIL program after finding only 12% of people filled out an NCAA Women’s tournament bracket last year. YPulse’s Scouting Next Gen Sports Fans research found that young people want to see more diversity / inclusivity / equality in sports, while gender equality / sexism has risen on the list of issues Gen Z and Millennials are passionate about right now. (Marketing Dive, Adweek)