The Road to the Championship
National Participation
There are 213 NCAA member institutions that sponsor Division I Men’s Soccer teams, but not all programs are eligible to compete in the National Championship, due to 3 programs still in the re-classification process. The 213 programs support approximately 5,700 Men’s Soccer student-athletes across the country.
Selection Process
The 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship provides for a field of 48 teams to compete in a single-elimination tournament. Twenty-three conference champions qualify automatically; the balance of the field is selected at large by the NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Committee. The teams will be seeded so that 16 of the 48 teams will receive a First Round bye and automatically advance to the Second Round.
Selection Show - Nov. 16
The 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship bracket will be announced on the Monday before the first round of competition.
First & Second Rounds - Nov. 19 & 22
Sixteen single-elimination first-round games will be conducted at non-predetermined campus sites. The winning team from each match will advance to the second round which includes sixteen single-elimination games conducted at non-predetermined campus sites. The winning team from each match will advance to the third round.
Third Round - Nov. 28 & 29
Eight single-elimination third-round games will be conducted at non-predetermined campus sites. The winning team from each match will advance to the quarterfinals.
Quarterfinals - Dec. 4 & 5
Four single-elimination quarterfinal games will be conducted at non-predetermined campus sites. The winning team from each of the four quarterfinals will advance to the championship final site in Cary, North Carolina.
Men's College Cup - December 11 & 14
The 2026 NCAA Men's College Cup will be held at First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina. The two winning teams from the semifinals will advance and compete in the single-elimination national championship match.