NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Belmont University men's soccer program and eighth-year head coach
David Costa announced the Bruins' 2026 fall schedule Tuesday morning. Highlighted by 10 home dates, Belmont's schedule features a 16-match regular season and two opening exhibition matches at E.S. Rose Park.
"We have built an extremely challenging and diverse non-conference schedule for this fall," commented coach Costa. "We play opponents from eight different leagues and will have the opportunity to play in several tough environments on the road, which will help us prepare for Missouri Valley Conference play and a deep run in the conference tournament."
"We look forward to getting our group on the field this fall and attacking this schedule," added coach Costa.
The Bruins get things underway the evening of Sunday, Aug. 9 when Belmont hosts MVC foe Evansville for a friendly. The following weekend, the Bruins take on nearby NCAA Division II Trevecca Nazarene for their second and final exhibition at Rose Park on Saturday, Aug. 15.
Belmont hosts Memphis in an in-state showdown on opening night on Thursday, Aug. 20 before hitting the road for a pair of challenging away affairs. Wrapping up the opening weekend of the regular season, the Bruins visit Wright State on Sunday, Aug. 23. The following Friday, Aug. 28, Belmont heads to Central Arkansas.
To start the month of September, the Bruins welcome former conference adversary Mercer on Friday, Sept. 4 before hosting the 29th Battle of the Boulevard on Tuesday, Sept. 8. Belmont has defeated close rival Lipscomb 2-nil each of the last two seasons and looks to take the lead in the heated series, which is deadlocked at 12-12-4. Kickoff between the Bruins and the Bisons on Sept. 8 is set for 6:30 p.m. from Rose Park.
On Saturday, Sept. 12, Belmont heads to Johnson City, Tennessee, to take on another former conference opponent in East Tennessee State University. The Bruins return to the Music City on Friday, Sept. 18 when they host Southern Indiana. For the second-straight year, Belmont travels to the University of Louisville during the regular season, taking on the Cardinals on Monday, Sept. 21 in the Derby City.
The Bruins' final non-conference home match is set for Friday, Sept. 25 against the Summit League's University of St. Thomas.
Belmont begins MVC play on Saturday, Oct. 3 with a trip to Des Moines, Iowa, to face Drake, who won a share of last season's regular season championship. The next Tuesday, Oct. 6, the Bruins wrap up their non-conference slate at University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Belmont will get back-to-back MVC home matches on Sunday, Oct. 11 (Bradley) and Saturday, Oct. 17 (UIC), before traversing to Bowling Green, Ohio, to take on Bowling Green State University on Sunday, Oct. 25. Senior night is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 30 versus Western Michigan, who won last season's MVC Championship and advanced to the second round of the 2025 NCAA Championship.
The Bruins close the regular season on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at the University of Evansville, last year's MVC regular season co-champion with Drake and former member Northern Illinois.
The 2026 MVC Men's Soccer Championship will once again comprise a six-team bracket and be held on campus sites beginning with the opening round on Sunday, Nov. 8. The MVC Championship semifinals will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 11 with the title match being held on Saturday, Nov. 14.
Last fall, Belmont finished fourth in the Valley and was only one result from a regular season championship in a tightly-contested standings race. The Bruins went 8-3-6 overall in 2025 and were 3-2-2 in MVC play. For the first time in program history, Belmont went undefeated through its first 11 matches of the season with a 6-0-5 start.
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