NCAA Soccer Championships (College Cup)

What are the NCAA Soccer Championships?

The NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Soccer Championships are the NCAA's single-elimination tournaments that decide the Division I national champions in college soccer. The NCAA's 2025–26 prechampionship manuals describe the men's championship as a 48-team, single-elimination tournament and the women's as a 64-team, single-elimination tournament.^[3][4] The last four teams of each meet at a single site for the semifinals and final, the College Cup.^[1][2] Divisions II and III hold separate NCAA championships with their own records books.^[8]

Who organizes them?

The National Collegiate Athletic Association conducts the championships through Division I and publishes its dates and sites, manuals, selection criteria and records books.^[1][3] The 2025 men's College Cup was hosted by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary.^[3]

When and where are they held?

The tournaments run from mid-November to December after the fall season. In 2025 the men's bracket opened on November 20 and closed with semifinals and a final on December 12 and 15 at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina.^[3] Its later rounds were played on November 23 and November 29 or 30, with quarterfinals on December 5 or 6.^[3] The women's bracket opened on November 14, 15 or 16, continued with second and third rounds on November 20 and 23 and quarterfinals on November 28 or 29, and ended with the Women's College Cup on December 5 and 8 at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.^[4] For 2026 the NCAA lists both College Cups at WakeMed Soccer Park: the women's on December 10 and 13 and the men's on December 11 and 14.^[1][2] The 2025–26 women's manual had given December 11 and 14 for the 2026 Women's College Cup.^[4]

Season is the championship year as the NCAA records books print it; Pool / Format gives the men's (M) and women's (W) champions and Host cities the College Cup sites, from the NCAA's Division I championship records books.^[5][6] The women's records book runs through 2024; the 2025 women's result is as reported by the Atlantic Coast Conference.^[7]

Since when do they exist?

The NCAA men's records book lists the first Division I men's championship in 1959, won by Saint Louis over Bridgeport, with the final at UConn.^[5] The women's records book begins in 1982, when North Carolina beat UCF at UCF.^[6] The men's book credits co-champions for 1967, when the final was called because of inclement weather, and for 1968 and 1989, when the finals ended in ties after overtime; later finals level after overtime have been settled on penalty kicks, as in 2019, when Georgetown and Virginia drew 3-3 and Georgetown won the shoot-out 7-6.^[5] The women's book records the 2020 final, Santa Clara against Florida State, as a 1-1 draw decided 4-1 on penalty kicks.^[6]

How do teams qualify?

For 2025 the men's manual gives 22 conferences automatic qualification and fills the remaining 26 places at large; teams need an overall Division I won-lost-tied record of .500 or better to be considered, and the committee uses the adjusted Rating Percentage Index (RPI), head-to-head results, results against common opponents and late-season performance.^[3] The women's manual gives 30 conferences automatic qualification, with the remaining teams chosen at large; its criteria include the adjusted RPI and wins and ties against teams in the adjusted RPI top 25, and, as secondary criteria, results against teams already selected to the field and late-season performance, defined as the last eight games including conference tournaments.^[4]

Why do they matter?

They decide the NCAA's Division I national titles in men's and women's soccer, and the NCAA publishes a championship records book for each, listing every final's score, runner-up and site since 1959 and 1982 respectively.^[5][6] In 2025 the brackets admitted 48 men's and 64 women's teams, with 22 and 30 places respectively reserved for conference automatic qualifiers.^[3][4]

Who competes?

Men's and women's teams from Division I member schools, entered as conference automatic qualifiers or at-large selections.^[3][4] In 2025 Washington beat NC State 3-2 in overtime for the men's title in Cary, according to the NCAA records book.^[5] Florida State beat Stanford 1-0 for the women's title at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, as reported by the Atlantic Coast Conference.^[7] The 2024 finals, both in Cary, went to Vermont, 2-1 over Marshall in overtime, and to North Carolina, 1-0 over Wake Forest, according to the NCAA records books.^[5][6]