Barack Obama's March Madness Bracket Revealed, Flawless Final Four Selection Pays Out $32K On $100 Bet: 'It Gives People Great Pleasure' To Beat Me

Since 2009, former President Barack Obama has released an annual NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament bracket, taking part in the March Madness challenge.

Here's a look at which teams Obama is backing in 2024.

What Happened: What began as a tradition while in the White House has continued with Obama sharing a bracket annually.

Obama mentioned on a recent podcast that during his first attempt at publicly releasing a March Madness bracket, he accurately chose North Carolina as the champion.

"My bracket was beautiful," Obama said.  

Obama noted that he was in the top 4% of all brackets that year and was feeling pretty good. Since then, he doesn't think he has picked another winner.

The former president said “it gives people great pleasure” to beat him.

"I want to give people that satisfaction."

Obama predicts that betting favorite Connecticut will win back-to-back NCAA Men's Basketball Championships. Obama has 3-seed Kentucky losing to Connecticut in the championship game.

Here is a look at Obama's Final Four and their betting odds to win the championship and make the Final Four, with odds from sportsbook DraftKings DKNG.  

• Connecticut: +360 (champion), +105 (final four)
• Kentucky: +2,200, +700
• Baylor: +3,000, +650
• Purdue: +700, +165

A $100 bet on Obama's final four all being correct would pay out at odds of +32,495, turning a $100 bet into a profit of $32,495.

Obama selected seven first round upsets, picking all four 9-seeds (Northwestern, Michigan State, Texas A&M, TCU), 11-seed New Mexico, 13-seed Vermont and 11-seed North Carolina State to win their first games.

A native of Illinois, Obama selected the University of Illinois to advance to the Elite 8 before losing to eventual champion Connecticut. Obama's Elite 8 includes all four 1-seeds, three 3-seeds and a 2-seed.

Obama went to school at Columbia University and Harvard University, but he's not backing the lone Ivy League team in the field, predicting Yale to lose in the first round.

"Please don't rub it in when my bracket gets busted," Obama tweeted.

Last year, Obama predicted nine first-round upsets and got 0 of the Final 4 predictions (Duke, Houston, Baylor, UCLA) correct.

The 2023 March Madness tournament was the first since the field expanded in 1985 to have no 1, 2, or 3 seeds in the Final 4 and only the fourth time with no 1-seeds.

Related Link: March Madness 2024: Betting Odds, How To Watch NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, Use Data To Predict Winner

What's Next: The 2024 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament has shared rights between Warner Bros. Discovery WBD and Paramount Global PARAPARAA.

The games will be broadcast on Warner's TBS, TNT and truTV along with Paramount's CBS. Games will also be streamed on Warner's Max platform and Paramount's Paramount+.

The Final Four (April 6) and Championship (April 8) games will be aired on TBS.

Read Next: March Madness Indeed: Here’s How Much A $100 Bet On 2023 Final Four Would Have Paid Out

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