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After years of debate, the SEC is lastly transferring to an enlarged in-conference format for soccer, with many potential postseason and monetary advantages.<\/span>
In yet one more transfer to assist safe an even bigger place within the Faculty Soccer Playoff, the SEC has moved to a nine-game convention schedule for soccer.
In increasing from an eight-game slate per crew, in place since 1992, the SEC will match codecs utilized by the Huge Ten and Huge 12. The transfer arrives because the Faculty Soccer Playoff additionally stated this week that it’ll take power of schedule into better account in its rankings.
The brand new SEC format will see the convention proceed to have a single-standings, non-divisional construction. Groups will every play three mounted annual opponents, with an eye fixed towards preserving conventional rivalries, whereas the remaining six convention video games per yr will rotate among the many different members. Every SEC college will face each different one at the very least as soon as each two years, and in each house and away settings each 4 years.
Given the common placement of SEC groups in nationwide school soccer rankings, increasing the quantity of in-conference play is the only, and sure only, solution to amplify that strength-of-schedule metric. SEC groups, nevertheless, will nonetheless be required to schedule at the very least one sport per yr towards a crew from the ACC, Huge Ten, or Huge 12\u2014except they play impartial Notre Dame.
\u201cThis format protects rivalries, will increase aggressive steadiness, and paired with our requirement to play an extra Energy opponent, ensures SEC groups are nicely ready to compete and succeed within the Faculty Soccer Playoff,\u201d convention commissioner Greg Sankey stated in an announcement.
The brand new soccer schedule will take impact in 2026. Leaders throughout the SEC and the person colleges had been debating the structure for several years<\/a>. With the swap, nevertheless, the SEC is in line to obtain further rights charges from ESPN, with estimates hovering round $5 million per college, per yr.
The transfer, nevertheless, can be occurring because the SEC, like different main conferences, tries to safe most positions throughout the CFP, and potential strikes there helped immediate the SEC\u2019s inside transfer. Whereas there’s common consensus for growing the present 12-team format to 16, disagreement continues<\/a> over how automated berths can be allotted.\u00a0
Fellow energy convention the Huge Ten, in the meantime, has informally considered a CFP structure as large as 28 teams<\/a>. Whereas that concept has drawn widespread rebukes, it could additionally carry school soccer closer to the March Madness elements of college basketball<\/a>.
The ACC nonetheless has its groups play eight video games per yr throughout the convention, however in keeping with a number of studies, that convention is anticipated to comply with swimsuit and transfer to 9 video games as nicely. With 17 groups within the ACC, nevertheless, the maths round enlarged in-conference play is extra advanced, and commissioner Jim Phillips has stated some conventional rivalries between SEC and ACC colleges may very well be in danger.<\/p>\n