The University of Central Florida (UCF) men’s soccer team has secured its eighth conference championship and will compete in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The Knights have achieved an 8-1-2 record over their last 11 matches, entering the postseason as one of the nation’s top-performing teams.
UCF will host Florida Atlantic in the tournament’s first round on Thursday. The winner will advance to face Georgetown, which is seeded seventh, in the second round.
The Knights earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament after claiming their first Sun Belt Tournament title with a 3-1 victory at Marshall. Although most UCF teams participate in the Big 12 Conference, men’s soccer competes in the Sun Belt Conference since joining it in 2023 due to the Big 12 not sponsoring men’s soccer.
Both UCF men’s and women’s soccer programs are participating in this year’s NCAA Tournament. This makes UCF the only program in Florida and one of just 15 nationwide to have both teams qualify for postseason play. The women’s team recently won its first-round match against Maine and is set to play Duke next.
In their path to winning the Sun Belt title, UCF defeated Georgia Southern before overcoming two nationally ranked opponents: No. 19 Kentucky and No. 12 Marshall. This season marks a milestone for UCF with three wins over top-25 ranked teams—the most ever for the program.
Head coach Scott Calabrese commented on his team’s performance: “How incredible this group of young men is — I could not be prouder. This group was 2-5-1 to start the season, and to end the season as Sun Belt Champions and win on the road and go through the teams we went through and then win at Marshall, what character this group has displayed,” Calabrese said. “It’s an incredible achievement, and we’ve put in a lot of work. The response from the team, the level went up from our players. They are determined to keep going.”
Marshall had only been beaten twice all season prior to Sunday’s championship match and had not lost at home since November 26, 2023—a streak lasting nearly two years.
This latest victory marks UCF’s fifth conference tournament title overall and its eighth conference championship, with its last coming during the 2020-21 season.
UCF will make its tenth appearance in the NCAA Tournament when it faces Florida Atlantic on Thursday at home. General admission tickets cost $10 and can be purchased via Ticketmaster at ucfknights.com. The first 100 UCF students with valid ID will receive free entry on a first come, first serve basis; stadium gates open at 6 p.m., with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m.
