The Charlotte 49ers men's soccer team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. The team has been a member of the NCAA Division I American Conference (American) since the 2022 season—first as an associate member in 2022, and as a full member since 2023. The team plays their home games at Transamerica Field in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2011, the team reached the championship of the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship, for the first time in program history.
History In 1996, the Charlotte 49ers men's soccer team became the first Conference USA team in any sport to reach the National semi-finals. The Niners won a school record 19 games. They went 7–1 in Conference USA to capture the regular season title. The Niners defeated College of Charleston, Notre Dame and Hartford to reach the national semi-finals before falling to Florida International in front of 20,269 fans in Richmond, Virginia. Goalkeeper Jon Busch becomes the Niners' second first team All-American after recording 12 shutouts and a 0.89 goals against average. Busch also earned Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year honors. John Tart was named Conference USA Coach of the Year.
The most notable season in Charlotte soccer history came in 2011 when the 49ers became the first team of any sport in school history to reach an NCAA national championship. The team was ranked in the top 25 throughout the entire season thanks to a challenging yet successful non-conference campaign. The Niners finished the regular season with an Atlantic 10 record of 6–1–2 and 13–3–2 record overall. After an early disappointing loss to Xavier in the Atlantic 10 tournament, Charlotte then went on a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. The unseeded Niners defeated Furman, No. 11 UAB, No. 10 Akron, and No. 5 Connecticut to advance to the program's second ever College Cup in Hoover, Alabama. The Niners went on to defeat No. 3 Creighton before falling to No. 1 North Carolina in the national championship game with a score of 1–0.
Charlotte's most recent conference change was announced during the 2021–22 offseason, when it left Conference USA (CUSA) for the American (then known in full as the American Athletic Conference). The decision of the Sun Belt Conference to reinstate its men's soccer league effective with the 2022 season dropped the CUSA men's soccer membership to four. Of these four schools, three, including Charlotte, were scheduled to move fully to the American in the near future, with a 2023 entry date later confirmed. Accordingly, The American brought all four remaining C-USA men's soccer teams into its own soccer league.
Players
Current roster
Individual career records
Goals # Name Seasons Years Goals 1 Fernando Sosa 1978–81 4 66 2 David Cooper 1985–88 4 40 3 Gabe Garcia 1988–91 4 39 4 Mac Cozier 1992–95 4 34 5 Jimmy Koutsokalis 1977–80 4 29 John Griffith 1983–86 4 29 Matthys Barker 1994–97 4 29 6 Doug Pratt 1991–93 3 28 Mira Mupier 2001–04 4 28 7 Tureh Doh 1979–82 4 27 Charlotte 49ers Men's Soccer 2011 Media Guide
Assistances # Name Seasons Years Ass. 1 Mac Cozier 1992–95 4 31 2 Randy Sheen 1990–94 4 28 Matthys Barker 1994–97 4 3 Jimmy Koutsokalis 1977–80 4 26 4 Ian Dennis 1989–93 4 25 5 Fernando Sosa 1978–81 4 24 6 A. Richardson 1987–90 4 22 Jamath Shoffner 1996–99 3 7 John Griffith 1983–86 4 21 Jon Mabee 1995–98 4 Matt Bradner 1995–99 4
Professional players
Major League Soccer Brandt Bronico (Charlotte FC) Jon Busch (San Jose Earthquakes) Mira Mupier (Chicago Fire) Donnie Smith (New England Revolution) Callum Montgomery (FC Dallas) Elliot Panicco (Nashville SC)
USL Pro Andres Cuero (Wilmington Hammerheads) Carson Price (San Antonio FC) Charles Rodriguez (Wilmington Hammerheads) Evan Harding (Richmond Kickers) Adam Ruud (Charlotte Eagles) Chris Salvaggione (Charlotte Eagles) Mike Franks (Wilmington Hammerheads) Grady Farmer (Wilmington Hammerheads) Dafydd ‘David’ Hughes (Myrtle Beach Seadawgs) Ray Tomlin (Virginia Beach Mariners, Colorado Foxes, Atlanta Silverbacks)
North American Soccer League Floyd Franks (Carolina RailHawks FC) Giuseppe Gentile (San Antonio Scorpions) Tyler Gibson (San Antonio Scorpions)
S.League Graham Tatters (Woodlands Wellington FC)
Coaches
All-time head coaches
Coach Tenure Record Conf.results Gf. Ga. NCAAapps. Ike Gardner 1976–80 47–47–5 6–9–1 238 266 Steve Parker 1981 6–12–0 0–2–0 39 37 Bob Warming 1982–88 67–52–17 16–9–4 306 217 Frank Kohlenstein 1989–94 77–32–12 20–6–6 277 145 3 John Tart 1995–2006 117–92–28 53–40–11 403 318 2 Jeremy Gunn 2006–11 66–26–12 35–13–6 194 105 2 Kevin Langan 2012–Present 86–34–20 38-10-10 ~~ ~~ 6 Totals 1976–2018 526–295–94 228–149–38 1457 1088 7
References
External links