After an 11-year hiatus, the UW-Oshkosh men’s soccer will be returning to the pitch in 2027 as the university’s 22nd varsity sport.
“I’m proud to share that effective immediately, men’s soccer is returning to UW-Oshkosh,” Assistant Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics Darryl Sims said on Feb. 16. “Men’s soccer is woven into the fabric of UW-Oshkosh Athletics history, and its return is more than just the relaunch of a sport, it is the revival of a proud championship tradition, a renewed promise to past and future student-athletes, and a moment of great excitement for our campus and community.”
UW-Oshkosh Chancellor Manohar Singh said bringing men’s soccer back was the day he was hoping for.
“Especially when you’re a Titan, you know you’re going to pull together the community and share your victories off and on the field with your community,” Singh said. “We stand together as Titans, as (the) UW-Oshkosh, with everyone who has been through these doors as alums and students, and those who aspire to be our students and athletes, and those in the community who support us.”
The program initially ran from 1984-2015, and was suspended following the 2015 season.
According to an Advance-Titan article from April 8, 2015, the men’s soccer and tennis teams were cut due to the state budget cuts, the lack of both a conference championship status and in addition to Title XI guidelines on gender balances within the university’s sports roster.
During the cuts in 2015, both men’s and women’s cross country and track and field programs combined under a restructured coaching lineup.
“This is the hardest decision I’ve had to make as the athletic director,” Sims said of the changes in a 2015 press release. “It affects the lives (of) our student-athletes, the impacted coaches and the whole athletics department. We owe it to our students to provide a high-quality and positive competitive experience. As costs rise and budgets shrink, that becomes more difficult. Therefore we need to look at what we offer with a critical eye.”
Sims said Monday that the university made the commitment to adding men’s soccer back once the WIAC got to a place where they would have enough teams to host a conference championship.
Since the team was suspended, UW-Eau Claire, UW-River Falls, UW-Stevens Point and UW-Stout have launched their own men’s programs. In addition, UW-Platteville and UW-Whitewater, which kept their programs active even when the WIAC did not sponsor the sport.
The Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) restarted their NCAA automatic qualifying tournament in 2024, which grants the winner a spot in the NCAA Division III tournament.
The UWO men’s soccer team has been one of the most successful programs in both the WIAC and NCAA, posting a 423-122-55 all-time record, along with two WIAC conference titles and 14 NCAA tournament appearances, with eight of those being second round appearances.
The Titans are still the only program in the WIAC to reach a national semifinal match four times, and hold a 19-12-3 record in tournament play. UWO is sixth in Division III history in consecutive winning seasons with 31, ninth in consecutive wins, 11th in both shutouts during a single season and consecutive home victories, and 18th in consecutive matches without a loss.
Seven former players have been inducted into the UW-Oshkosh Athletic Hall of Fame, with Jack Borski set to become the eighth member, as he will be inducted this fall as part of the 2026 class.
Prior to the announcement, there was a push to have men’s soccer return to the athletic lineup, highlighted by the “Bring Back UW-Oshkosh Men’s Soccer” Facebook page, which posted about discussions surrounding the team.
“UW-Oshkosh is exploring the exciting possibility of bringing back Men’s Soccer — one of the most accomplished and tradition-rich programs in the university’s history,” the group’s Facebook post in November said. “While the program was previously disbanded and the past decade has held its challenges, our new chancellor has shown strong interest in reviving the team with fresh energy, improved structure, and meaningful updates.”
Following the announcement, the page has since been renamed “UW-Oshkosh Men’s Soccer is BACK.”
Peter Dillett, an alumnus of UWO who played soccer for the Titans during the 1996-99 seasons, is also excited to see the return of the program, along with former head coach Toby Bares, who will be returning to help assist the program ahead of their first match.
“(The men’s soccer alumni are) extremely excited to see our storied program return to UW-Oshkosh,” Dillett said. “We want to thank Toby Bares for all the hard work he put into us and into building our program and Chancellor Singh and Darryl Sims for their enthusiasm and vision to enable men’s soccer’s return.”
Dillett also went on to thank other UWO administrators for their support and said “we look forward to working with them in the future to ensure stability and success for men’s soccer.”
“UW-Oshkosh is such a wonderful place to be, and I can’t wait to welcome a new generation of soccer players as they pursue nothing less than a nationally recognized-caliber program,” Bares said. “I know that the men’s soccer alumni will be super excited and anxious to provide their support, because I know that they really value the experiences and the memories they have and they want nothing more than to see a new generation of players get what they got.”
A national search has started to find the program’s third coach in its history. When competition starts in 2027, UWO will hold its home matches at J.J Kellar Field at Titan Stadium, with the team rejoining the WIAC, bringing the conference to seven members.
Any students who wish to compete for the black and gold can fill out the prospective athlete form on the athletic department’s website, uwoshkoshtitans.com.