A New Era of Seeding
The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) will implement a new seeding formula for its boys and girls soccer tournaments beginning with the 2026 season, moving away from a simple win‑percentage metric.
The revised approach incorporates strength of schedule, counting both in‑league and non‑conference opponents, a method already used by lacrosse and mirrored in other CIAC sports such as volleyball and tennis.
Mark Berkowitz, tournament director for both boys and girls soccer, explained that the previous formula often left teams that advanced deep in the bracket under‑seeded, and the new system is intended to pair more comparable opponents later in the competition.
Berkowitz noted that soccer teams typically play fewer non‑conference matches than lacrosse, so the quality of a team’s league will play a larger role in the seeding calculations.
The change also adjusts the qualifying threshold for girls soccer, lowering the required win‑rate from 40 % to 35 % to ensure enough teams qualify for Class S, a division that has seen a steady decline in participants over the past three years.
Gregg Simon, a member of the CIAC committee, said the organization wants a healthy number of qualifiers in each division to avoid double‑byes and to fill brackets across all four divisions.
He added that the committee’s three‑year review showed a drop from 25 qualifying girls teams in 2023 to just 21 last season, prompting the adjustment.
While the new formula is expected to be welcomed by many coaches, it also raises questions about how non‑conference scheduling will be weighed and how the revised thresholds will affect future tournament fields.