March Madness Party Ideas to Make Your Watch Party a Slam Dunk

That other sport’s Big Game gets a lot of attention, but it’s done in a day. You need enough March Madness party ideas to last a month, and Fetch has your back. Keep reading to learn how to: 

• Host a “build your bracket” party on Selection Sunday (March 16th)
• Plan some more casual get togethers in the first week of games
• Amp things up for the regional events in week 2 
• End the season with an unforgettable March Madness watch party for the Championship Game
• Earn rewards on all your watch party necessities by downloading the Fetch app

Why host a March Madness watch party?

Whether you’ve logged hours (days?) on NBA 2k25 or just like rooting for your alma mater, you’ll have fun hosting a March Madness party. What’s more fun than getting together with friends and family to cheer on a team of basketball players in their prime, all with great food and drinks? How about redeeming some of your rewards to let Fetch help with the festivities?

Hosting a memorable March Madness might sound like a challenge, but you don’t have to come up with March Madness party ideas on your own. Here’s how Fetch can help:

• Earn points on all your March Madness party games, decorations and food just by snapping the receipts.
• Choose personalized offers and boosted brands from the Fetch app to earn even more points with those snapped receipts.
• Save time by ordering your party supplies through Fetch Shop, where you earn points on every dollar.
• Redeem your points for gift cards to your favorite retailers and give your March Madness party ideas an upgrade.

March Madness party food ideas

Party snack ideas

What kinds of food do you expect when watching a game? Start with these ideas for your March Madness party foods:

• Buffalo wings: Make your own or have Wingstop cater your favorite flavors.
• Sliders: You can’t go wrong with White Castle frozen sliders
• Nachos: Tostitos chips and salsa with Sargento cheese at a minimum.
• Chips and dip: Tostitos chips do double duty with queso or Sabra hummus
• Veggie trays: Dippable veggies with hummus or a Litehouse dip

Vegetarian-friendly foods should be on your mind, too. Consider a good buffalo cauliflower recipe and some Beyond or Impossible sliders. Even if you aren’t planning for kids to be at the party, it’s good to have some kid-friendly foods like chicken nuggets or cheese and crackers.

Party drink ideas

Are those March Madness party food ideas making you thirsty? We have some drink suggestions ready to go:

• Sodas and juices: Simply juices, Polar seltzers, Coke and Pepsi are a good start.
• Pre-made cocktails: Bulleit and Svedka have pre-made cocktails ready to go.
• Beer: You know what your guests will prefer, from Miller High-Life to Leinenkugel’s.
• Punch: Alcoholic or non, Fanta Orange is a perfect base for a slam dunk punch.

Sweets and desserts

You don’t need to wait until the end of the party, and depending on the kind of party, baked goods and desserts might be the order of the day. Here are some tips 

• Basketball-shaped cupcakes
• Cake balls or cake pops shaped like basketballs
• Cookies decorated like basketballs and backboards
• March Madness bracket cake

March Madness party decorations

Even if you only host one March Madness party, decorations matter. If you’re planning a series of parties (or want to be prepared for next year), think smart about your decorations: it’s better to spend a little extra for ones made to last. Here are some essentials:

• Basketball/NCAA themed table cloths and napkins
• Basketball plates and referee serving platters
• Snack cups/buckets shaped like a backboard, hoop and net
• Pennants and banners for any favored team(s)
• Basketball-shaped LED string lights and/or garlands
• Foam fingers (full-size or mini)
• A whiteboard to track and update the official bracket so everyone can see
• Anything in your favorite team’s colors

If you don’t know where to start shopping for March Madness party decorations, open up the Fetch app and head into Fetch Shop (tap the shopping cart icon). Choose your retailer, like Walmart or Kohl’s, type “basketball decorations” into the search bar and start scrolling. Looking for gear branded with your favorite team? Head to Fanatics (they’ve got your jersey needs covered, too).

March Madness party games and activities

Bracket building challenge

The most popular March Madness party game is the bracket building challenge, and as long as you’ve got an event that’s early in the season, you should make it a part of your festivities. 

1. Purchase or print brackets (official NCAA 2025 bracket).
2. Walk through how the bracket works for anyone who hasn’t done one before.
3. Everyone fills out their brackets, predicting winners until they have a champion.
4. You don’t need a reason to pick one winner over another (kids usually pick mascots).
5. Plan awards for completed brackets (like gift cards from Fetch).
6. Include award categories for kids and maybe a joke award for the least correct bracket.

Looking to splurge a bit? Have Staples run off some nice copies of the brackets on heavier stock paper so they’ll last all of March Madness.

Classic games with a basketball spin

Most traditional party games just need a spin to become a March Madness party game, including:

• Charades
• Pictionary
• Bingo
• Jeopardy-style trivia
• Game of Things

If you’ve got beer pong fans, order a pack of ping pong balls colored like basketballs. It’s also a good idea to have an over-the-door basketball hoop with a mini basketball for commercial breaks and halftime. Need more time to plan the rest of your party? Open up the Fetch app to find all kinds of party games in Fetch Shop.

Games for kids

Some of the games we’ve covered work well for kids, but it’s a good idea to have something around for kids who either don’t understand the bracket or aren’t interested in basketball.

• Mascot coloring sheets with a full pack of Prang crayons
• Soft foam basketballs and a kid-sized hoop
• Basketball word searches and crosswords
• Scavenger hunt throughout the house
• Basketball video games

When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with a separate TV with Space Jam or Air Bud.

Planning the ultimate March Madness themed party

By now, you should have some ideas for your March Madness party, so it’s time to start planning. First, this is the schedule of events for 2025:

• Selection Sunday: Sunday, March 16
• First Four: March 18-19
• First round: March 20-21
• Second round: March 22-23
• Sweet 16: March 27-28
• Elite Eight: March 29-30
• Final Four: Saturday, April 5 
• NCAA Championship Game: Monday, April 7

We wouldn’t expect even the most dedicated NCAA fan to plan something for every part of that schedule, but it’s a great way to narrow down your plans. Are you just hosting a Championship Game party? Do you want to kick things off on Selection Sunday? When is your favorite team or alma mater playing?

Scheduling your parties

The key to an unforgettable March Madness party is one you build up to over the season. 

1. Start with some friends to fill out brackets and have some snacks on Selection Sunday. 
2. Invite more folks over for the First Four (be sure to have extra brackets).
3. Schedule first- and second-round parties based on your favorite team(s).
4. Up the ante and spring for more food and drinks when it’s time for the Final Four and the NCAA Championship Game.

Picking a theme

A March Madness themed party can focus on a particular team or basketball in general. Your specific theme doesn’t matter as much as you choosing a theme. Some examples:

• Favorite team: Deck out the party space in the team colors and banners.
• Bracket building: Keep a large bracket and leaderboard to track winning brackets.
• Final Four: Have your guests pick a team and divide your party space into fourths with games to stage your own Final Four.
• Championship Game: It’s the last game of March Madness, think of all your basketball theme ideas, team colors for the finals, prizes for brackets and dial it up to championship levels.

As you’re planning food, drinks and decorations for your March Madness party (or parties), remember to search for what you need in Fetch Shop so you’ll earn points on nearly every dollar.

Setting up the party space

Setting up the party space will feel pretty intuitive if you’ve ever had people over:

• Plan seating that offers everyone a clear view of the TV.
• Consider having a second TV if it’s hard to give everyone a good view of the action.
• Turn your TV’s motion smoothing back on if you’ve turned it off.
• Check your audio and consider a second set of speakers.
• Set clear pathways from entrance to seating and food.
• Ensure everyone knows where trash and recycling can go.
• Keep warm foods in a slow cooker.
• Refresh ice and other drink needs as the game(s) go on.

Checklist: using Fetch to earn rewards on your March Madness party

Here’s the quickest path to rewards when shopping for your March Madness party decorations, games and food:

1. Snap your receipts. Every receipt counts, so be sure to open up the Fetch app and snap your receipt so you don’t forget.
2. Shop offers and boosted brands. The Fetch app has personalized offers on products and retailers as well as entire brands with boosted point values. 
3. Shop online with Fetch Shop. Fetch Shop connects you directly to retailers so you can buy team gear, party supplies, decorations and more while earning extra points.
4. Repeat. Whether shopping for March Madness party supplies or your weekly grocery run, repeating these steps will maximize your points.

Final tips for hosting a March Madness party

We went over quite a few March Madness party ideas, so here are some final tips.

• Keep it simple. The most important thing is to watch the game and have fun with your family and friends. If planning the party is stressful, give yourself less to plan.
• Plan ahead. You can’t do everything at the last minute. Decorations can be planned well ahead of time, and you can put together a possible menu before you even grocery shop. 
• Prep food in advance. This is part of planning ahead, but it deserves its own spot. You don’t want to be in the kitchen during the game. Have food ready to go and a way to keep it hot or cold.
• Effortlessly earn rewards with Fetch! Open up that Fetch app (or download it if you haven’t already) and see how easily you can earn rewards on March Madness shopping!