This has been a tough time for traders. In fact, it has been a tough time for everyone. No corner of life escaped the effects of this outbreak, including sports. And unfortunately, this means many of the huge, annual events that normally bring us together as a community have been postponed.
At Topstep, we already planned to do a free "bracket competition" affectionately known as Market Mania 2020. Then came the cancellation of a certain collegiate basketball tournament that served as inspiration. However, after some thought, we've decided to move forward with Market Mania for two reasons:
1. It is perfectly compliant with social distancing policies.
2. This should be some fun, and we could probably all use some fun at this point.
So, without further ado, let us introduce you to Topstep Market Mania 2020, a completely free competition which pits 16 popular trading products against each other for the chance to be crowned champion on Monday, April 13.
To sweeten the pot, the 10 contestants with the highest bracket scores will also be awarded free Trading Combine accounts courtesy of Topstep.
How Does This Work?
We’ve created a bracket of 16 products divided into 4 trading-themed regions. It looks something like this:
In each round, 2 products will "play" each other with the winner being determined by the highest percentage change in price on the specified date. We will measure this percentage move by comparing the previous settlement, to the closing settlement for that day.
Each "round" will be played on a specific date. For instance, the Round of 16 will be played on Thursday, April 2 and feature 8 games between 16 products.
Looking at the "Bear" region, if you believe that the S&P 500 will rise more (or lose less) by percentage that day compared to Natural Gas, then you would pick the ES to move on to the Round of 8 (just like basketball).
How are the Brackets Scored?
The dates of each round and the number of points awarded for each correct pick are as follows:
| Round | Date | Correct Pick Earns | Total Points |
| Round of 16 | 4/2/2020 | 10 Point | 80 Points |
| Round of 8 | 4/6/2020 | 20 Points | 80 Points |
| Round of 4 | 4/8/2020 | 40 Points | 80 Points |
| Championship | 4/13/2020 | 80 Points | 80 Points |
| Total: | 320 Points |
As you can see, every bracket will score somewhere between 0 and 320 points. The bracket earning the most points will be crowned winner—the next highest scores will win the runner-up prizes.
Remember, this is meant to be fun, and is certainly not a substitute for trading the products in question. Frankly, this is more or less a game of completely random chance.
What Do I Get If I Win?
The Grand Prize winner will receive a free month subscription in a $150K Trading Combine.
Two First Prize winners will each get a free month subscription in a $100K Trading Combine.
Three Second Prize winners will get a free month subscription in a $50K Trading Combine.
Four Third Prize winners will get a free month subscription in a $30K Trading Combine.
How Do I Enter?
Just fill out a bracket by clicking this link and following the instructions provided.
If you run into any questions, please let us know in the comments.
Where Can I Find a Leader Board?
We will send periodic updates to the email you provide. Don't worry, we won't send anything besides competition updates unless you specifically want them.
We'll also breakdown the results on the Topstep Blog. Hopefully we manage to do this in a mildly amusing way.
Some Legal Considerations
You can find the official rules (as drafted by our lawyers) by clicking here. Everything gets a little messy when it comes to giving out prizes, but so long as receiving a prize is legal where you live, we'll do our best to accomodate you.
Have fun and stay safe!
