SIUE

Cougars (Men)

Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville men's soccer program first took the field in 1967 under the leadership of Bob Guelker, a National Soccer Hall of Fame coach who had been hired away from Saint Louis University, where he built a dynasty that included five NCAA championships. Guelker quickly established SIUE as a national contender as well—the Cougars won the inaugural NCAA Division II championship in 1972, then moved up to Division I and captured that title in 1979. Over the following decades, the program continued to compete at the Division I level before eventually joining the Ohio Valley Conference, where they have won back-to-back OVC Tournament titles in 2023 and 2024. SIUE's primary rival is Saint Louis University, with the two programs contesting the Bronze Boot—once the premier rivalry in American college soccer. The 1980 edition of the match holds the record for the largest crowd in NCAA soccer history. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, just across the river from St. Louis, the Cougars play their home matches at Bob Guelker Field at Ralph Korte Stadium, a 4,000-seat venue on the southwest corner of campus.