Footballers, migrants and scholars: the globalization of US men's college soccer

US intercollegiate soccer is unique in world football by melding competitive amateur play with higher education and operating independently of FIFA. While immigrants have driven much of the 150-year history of college soccer, there has been an unprecedented foreign influx in the twenty-first century. We quantify the modern internationalization of men’s college soccer and assess factors driving this change via analysis of rosters from 1317 teams and a survey of coaches’ perceptions on foreign players and international recruitment. We estimate that 7600 players from 170 different countries played men’s college soccer in 2016, a 120% increase since 2000. Perceived growth drivers include expanding international recruiting by coaches, growing international awareness of college soccer as an option, a burgeoning industry of recruiting agencies, and technological globalization. Overall, US college soccer has become a globally attractive niche as an alternate pathway for players seeking quality competition while continuing their education.