A plan to overhaul the NCAA Division I men's soccer calendar in the United States has been rejected after enough member schools voted against it, ESPN reports.
The NCAA had announced in May that the current format, a season lasting between 10 and 13 weeks in the autumn, would give way to a campaign running across both the autumn and spring semesters.
However, the measure failed to secure more than 75% of the Division I Cabinet vote in October. That triggered a 30-day rescission period in which the change could be overturned if 241 of the 361 Division I schools opposed it. Once the deadline passed at 5pm Eastern Time on Friday, the NCAA confirmed that the threshold had been met.
Maryland men's coach Sasho Cirovski, one of the leading advocates of the reform, told ESPN FC the existing structure had barely changed since 1959. Supporters argued that a less congested calendar would allow more recovery and training time between matches, give coaches longer to develop players, reduce roster churn by having a single annual transfer window rather than two, and leave students more room for their studies.
US Soccer Federation chief executive J.T. Batson also supported the proposal, telling ESPN it would be better for player development and would prevent young athletes from being overworked.
Opponents raised practical objections. The University of Toledo pointed to higher costs, clashes over facilities with spring sports, extra staffing demands and weather problems for institutions in northern states. The University of Idaho feared other sports would follow with similar requests, stretching support staff. ESPN noted that Goal.com had reported similar concerns about strain on staff and the precedent the change might set.
Cirovski dismissed those worries, saying: "Perfection should not be the enemy of progress." He argued that the short season was driving top young players away from college soccer towards professional development pathways.
ESPN also highlighted that MLS will move to a summer-to-spring calendar next year after 30 years of running from spring to autumn, a shift advocates believe college soccer should mirror.
Despite the setback, Cirovski said he would look for other ways to split the season across two semesters, adding that many schools remain keen to pursue the idea.