| Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer | |
| University: | University of Kentucky |
| Athletic Director: | Mitch Barnhart |
| Conference: | Sun Belt Conference |
| Conference Short: | Sun Belt |
| Current: | 2022 Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer team |
| Founded: | 1991 |
| City: | Lexington |
| Stateabb: | KY |
| State: | Kentucky |
| Coach: | Johan Cedergren |
| Tenure: | 12th |
| Stadium: | Wendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex |
| Capacity: | 3,368 |
| Nickname: | Wildcats |
| Pattern B1: | _thinbluestripes2 |
| Body1: | ffffff |
| Rightarm1: | ffffff |
| Shorts1: | ffffff |
| Socks1: | ffffff |
| Pattern B2: | _thinwhitestripes |
| Leftarm2: | 063494 |
| Body2: | 063494 |
| Rightarm2: | 063494 |
| Shorts2: | 063494 |
| Socks2: | 063494 |
| Ncaaeliteeight: | 2018 |
| Ncaasweetsixteen: | 2000, 2018, 2020, 2022 |
| Ncaatourneys: | 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 |
| Conference Tournament: | MAC |
| Conference Season: | MAC |
The Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of the University of Kentucky (UK).
Since the Southeastern Conference (SEC) does not sponsor men's soccer (minimum four schools needed to sponsor a sport, only two offer it), the team has been associate members of other conferences. From 1995 to 2004, it was a member of the Mid-American Conference.[1] In 2005, UK moved men's soccer to Conference USA, creating a rivalry with fellow SEC member South Carolina, which had rejoined the reunified conference that season. Both UK and South Carolina remained in C-USA men's soccer through the 2021 season, after which both programs left for the newly reinstated men's soccer league of the Sun Belt Conference.[2]
In 2018, Kentucky went 17–1–1 with wins against #6 Louisville and #2 Indiana, both by a score of 3–0 at home. They finished 7–1 overall in conference play with their only lose coming on the road at FIU 2–3. The Wildcats won the C-USA Regular Season and Tournament Titles. They were the #3 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, their highest until 2022.[3]
In 2022, Kentucky finished the regular season at 14–0–5 with wins against #10 Louisville and #21 Lipscomb at home, both by scores of 3–2. They also tied against #20 Tulsa in Tulsa 1–1 and #7 Marshall in Lexington 1–1. All four of these games took place in a two-week span from September 6 to September 20. They finished 5–0–3 and Sun Belt Regular Season and Tournament Champions. They were awarded the #1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, the first time in school history.
The school has two major derbies, one in-state and one in their primary conference.