A federal judge on Thursday denied the NCAA's request for a temporary restraining order against DraftKings, allowing the sports betting platform to continue using trademarked terms associated with the men's and women's basketball tournaments.

Judge Tanya Walton Pratt of the Southern District of Indiana ruled that the NCAA failed to demonstrate that DraftKings' use of the terms would cause irreparable harm. The NCAA had filed a trademark infringement complaint last week seeking to prevent DraftKings from using "March Madness," "Final Four," "Elite Eight," "Sweet Sixteen," and variations of those terms in its business promotions.

The legal dispute emerges as March Madness coincides with the continued expansion of legal sports betting across the United States. Sports wagering is now legal in a majority of states and Washington, D.C., with approximately a dozen states including California, Texas, Utah, and Hawaii maintaining prohibitions on the practice.

According to the American Gaming Association, Americans are projected to legally wager $3.3 billion on the NCAA men's and women's Division I basketball tournaments this year. The tournament period has become a significant revenue generator for the sports betting industry, making trademark disputes over tournament terminology particularly valuable for companies operating in the space.

The NCAA's trademark claims center on protecting its intellectual property rights to terms that have become synonymous with college basketball's premier championship events. However, the court's initial ruling suggests the organization will need to present stronger evidence of harm to succeed in its broader trademark infringement case against the online betting platform.