BURLINGTON, Vt. – Vermont men's soccer opens the 2026 campaign ranked No. 13 in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Preseason Poll after coming off a historic 2025 season seeing the Catamounts win their second consecutive America East Championship and earning the No. 1 Seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.
 
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United Soccer Coaches 2026 Preseason Rankings
 
The Catamounts notched an unbeaten regular season during the 2025 campaign (12-0-5) (14-1-5 overall record), adding onto the longest unbeaten streak in the country (29 matches unbeaten) which ultimately helped earn Vermont the No. 1 overall seed heading into the NCAA Tournament, something that had never been done before in UVM history regardless of sport. The squad was able to capture their second straight America East Championship while winning the Regular Season Championship outright for the first time since 2017.
 
Vermont is one of two America East teams ranked in this season's top 25 preseason poll (Bryant No. 10), garnering a top 25 selection for the fourth consecutive year (2023 No. 12, 2024 No. 14, 2025 No. 1, 2026 No. 13). The 2025 National Champions, University of Washington, came out of the preseason poll ranked No. 1 receiving six first place votes, followed by 2025 National Runner Up, NC State ranked No. 2. Furman ranked No. 3 earning one first place vote while Saint Louis University rounded out the top four ranked No. 4 earning one first place vote as well.
 
Following last season's success, Vermont saw two players from the 2025 roster move on to play professionally. Maximilian Kissel was selected as the 90th overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft by Inter Miami CF. He later signed into the professional ranks playing with Portland Timbers 2. Rui Aoki put pen to paper signing his first professional contract with Columbus Crew 2 in MLS NEXT Pro. Niklas Herceg was selected 16th overall in the first round of the MLS SuperDraft by FC Dallas, tying the highest draft pick in program history, but the goalkeeper from Alsdorf, Germany chose to temporarily forgo his MLS spot to return to Burlington to play out the 2026 season with the Catamounts.
 
Vermont is set to face two of the preseason top 25 teams this season (Bryant and Hofstra). The Catamounts kick off the 2026 season at home, hosting George Mason on Thursday, Aug. 20 with kickoff scheduled for 6 p.m. from Virtue Field. UVM will then stay at home for an afternoon matchup with Colgate on Sunday, Aug. 23 at 1 p.m.
 
 
For news and updates about the Vermont men's soccer program, follow @UVMmsoccer on Instagram, X, and Facebook, and visit UVMathletics.com.

EastRise Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont soccer