The NCAA announced today that it will be shifting from a “presale” system to a lottery system for the 2027 Women’s Final Four. The change in approach, according to the press release, was due to increasing demand for tickets and to provide a more “fair and streamlined experience” for fans.
In previous years, tickets to the Women’s Final Four were made available to the public via the traditional means – via Ticketmaster on a first-come, first-get basis. Part of that process involved having one or more presales, as is common for many live events. Fans could register, receive a presale code, and attempt to purchase tickets during a preset window.
While that process may have frustrated fans (as many ticket onsales do), it wasn’t necessarily unfair. Some fans were successful, others weren’t. That’s life, right? But now the lottery is designed to make this better.
The move to a lottery also mirrors numerous other high-profile events that use this methodology. In 2025, the French Open moved to a lottery system after years of public onsales. The Masters has used a lottery system since 2012. Wimbledon, the British Open, and most recently, the World Cup have all used lotteries to better organize their ticket distribution efforts. Even the Savannah Bananas use one.
And, most relevantly, this lottery mirrors the one used by the NCAA for the Men’s Final Four as well.
How the lottery will work
The NCAA’s lottery will work as follows:
- Each fan can request up to four ticket strips, with each strip including tickets to both semifinal matches and the national championship.
- Ticket strips are $400 each, and payment will be due at the time the application is submitted.
- All tickets distributed via the lottery will be upper-level seats.
- The application process will close at the end of May (specific date not announced), and winners will be notified over the summer.
- There is a $25 application fee, which a) does not apply to tickets if you win them, and b) is not refunded if you aren’t selected.
The 2027 Women’s Final Four will be held in Columbus, Ohio, followed by Indianapolis (2028) and San Antonio (2029).
Next Steps
Obviously the 2027 tournament is quite a while away – we haven’t even had the 2026 tournament yet. But if your team is perennially in the hunt for a national championship, this news will be relevant to you. We’ll keep you up to date on details when the application deadline in May is announced.
