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FIU Panthers men's soccer

American college soccer team From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The FIU Panthers men's soccer team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of Florida International University (FIU). The team is a member of the NCAA Division I American Conference.

Founded1972; 54 years ago (1972)
Head coach Kyle Russel (5th season)
ConferenceAmerican
Quick facts Founded, University ...
FIU Panthers men's soccer
Founded1972; 54 years ago (1972)
UniversityFlorida International University
Head coach Kyle Russel (5th season)
ConferenceAmerican
LocationWestchester, Florida, US
StadiumFIU Soccer Stadium
(capacity: 2,000)
NicknamePanthers
ColorsBlue and gold[1]
   
Home
Away
NCAA tournament championships
1982, 1984
NCAA tournament runner-up
1996, 1980, 1985
NCAA tournament Quarterfinals
1977, 1979, 1983
NCAA tournament Round of 16
2003, 2022, 1978
NCAA tournament appearances
1991, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2015, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023; 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985
Conference tournament championships
1991, 2015, 2022
Conference regular season championships
2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2017, 2021, 2022
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History

FIU started their soccer program in 1972. They were unaffiliated from any collegiate organization until they joined the NCAA Division II from 1975 to 1986. During this time, FIU went to 11 NCAA Division II Tournaments where they won the national championships in 1982 and 1984 and runners up in 1980 and 1985.[2]

Due to the success of their program in Division II, they became an NCAA Division I team in 1987. The team has represented FIU at 8 NCAA Division I Tournaments finishing runners up in 1996.[2]

FIU's most recent conference change was announced during the 2021–22 offseason, when it left Conference USA (C-USA) for The American. The decision of the Sun Belt Conference to reinstate its men's soccer league effective with the 2022 season dropped the C-USA men's soccer membership to four (Charlotte, FIU, Florida Atlantic, UAB).[3] Of these four schools, all but FIU (which remains a full C-USA member) were scheduled to move fully to The American in the near future, with a July 2023 entry date later confirmed.[4] Accordingly, The American brought all four remaining C-USA men's soccer teams into its own soccer league. FIU will remain an affiliate of The American after the other three schools fully join that league.[5]

Conferences

Throughout their history, the team has been part of several collegiate athletic conferences. They were members of the Trans America Athletic Conference (now known as the ASUN Conference) from 1991 to 1997 where they won the Conference Tournament in 1991. They joined the Atlantic Soccer Conference from 2000 to 2004 where they were Conference Regular Season Champions in 2000, 2002, 2003, and 2004. From 2005 to 2021, the team was a member of Conference USA,[2] and it joined the American Conference in 2022.

  • Independent (1972–1990)
  • TAAC (1991–1997)
  • Independent (1998–1999)
  • ASC (2000–2004)
  • C-USA (2005–2021)
  • The American (2022–present)

Roster

As of August 31, 2025[6]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

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Coaches

Current staff

As of August 31, 2025
More information Position, Staff ...
Position Staff
Head coachUnited States Kyle Russell
Associate head coachUnited States Dannie Merida
Assistant coachItaly Matteo Gasperoni
Volunteer goalkeeping coachItaly Giuseppe Weller
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All-time head coaches

More information NAt., Coach ...
NAt. Coach Tenure
USADr. Greg Myers1972–1974
USABill Nuttall1975–1979
GERKarl Kremser1980–2007
DRCMunga Eketebi2007–2011
USAKenny Arena2012–2013
USAScott Calabrese2014–2016
USAKevin Nylen2017–2020
USAKyle Russell2020–Present
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Notable alumni

Honours

National

Conference

Atlantic Soccer
  • Regular season (4): 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004
Atlantic Sun
C-USA
American

References

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