Timelines tracing the history of growth of intercollegiate championship tournaments
NCAA
Division I Men 1959 NCAA membership establishes eight-team championship 1963 Expanded to 16 teams 1968 Expanded to 21 teams 1969 Expanded to 24 teams 1979 Reduced to 19 teams 1980 Expanded to 20 teams 1982 Expanded to 23 teams 1987 Expanded to 24 teams 1989 Expanded to 28 teams 1993 Expanded to 32 teams 2001 Expanded to 48 teams 2020-21Field reduced to 36 teams due to COVID-19 pandemic 2022 Field returned to 48 teams
Division II Men 1972 NCAA membership establishes
24-team championship 1974 Reduced to 16 teams 1979 Reduced to 10 teams 1982 Expanded to 12 teams 1997 Expanded to 16 teams 2006 Expanded to 32 teams 2012 Expanded to 35 teams 2015 Expanded to 38 teams 2019 Expanded to 40 teams
Division III Men 1974 NCAA membership establishes
16-team championship 1980 Expanded to 24 teams 1990 Expanded to 32 teams 1997 Expanded to 40 teams 1999 Expanded to 44 teams
2000 Expanded to 48 teams 2006 Expanded to 56 teams 2008 Expanded to 61 teams
Tracking the Tournaments
Division I Women
1982 NCAA membership establishes a 12-team National Collegiate Championship involving all three divisions. 1984 Expanded to 14 teams 1986 Reduced to 12 teams due to establishment of Division III championship 1993 Expanded to 16 teams 1994 Expanded to 24 teams 1996 Expanded to 32 teams 1998 Expanded to 48 teams 2001 Expanded to 64 teams 2020-21Field reduced to 48 teams due to COVID-19 pandemic 2022 Field returned to 64 teams
Division II Women 1988 NCAA membership establishes four-team championship 1991 Expanded to six teams 1995 Expanded to eight teams 1996 Expanded to 12 teams 1997 Expanded to 16 teams 2001 Expanded to 24 teams 2003 Expanded to 32 teams 2007 Expanded to 48 teams 2018 Expanded to 56 teams
Division III Women 1986 NCAA membership establishes 12-team championship
1988 Expanded to 16 teams
1992 Expanded to 20 teams 1996 Expanded to 24 teams 1997 Expanded to 40 teams 1999 Expanded to 45 teams 2000 Expanded to 50 teams 2005 Expanded to 56 teams 2009 Expanded to 64 teams
NAIA
Men 1959 NAIA membership establishes four-team championship selected on a regional basis
1968 Tournament expanded to eight teams, which qualify by winning one of eight geographical regions
1979 Expanded to 10 teams, consisting of eight area champions, an at-large entry selected from national rankings and host institution
1981 Expanded to 12 teams, consisting of 11 area champions and host institution
1988 Reorganized 11 areas into 10 areas, creating an at-large berth joining the host institution in 12-team field
1994 Reorganized 10 areas into eight regions, creating three at-large berths, joining the host institution in 12-team field
1999 Restructured to 14 regions.
Tournament expanded to 16 teams, one for each region, plus two at-large berths. Pool play eliminated and a single elimination bracket adopted 2003 Expanded to 20 teams 2008 Expanded to 32 teams 2020 Expanded to 40 teams
Women 1984 NAIA membership establishes four-team championship 1990 Expanded to six teams 1994 Expanded to nine teams 1996 Expanded to 12 teams 2000 Restructured to 14 regions and tournament expanded to 16 teams, one for each region plus two at-large teams. Pool play eliminated and a single elimination bracket adopted 2003 Expanded to 20 teams 2008 Expanded to 32 teams 2020 Expanded to 40 teams
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