Women’s soccer scholarships are offered at various levels, including NCAA Division 1 and Division 2, NAIA schools, and junior colleges. Understanding the scholarship allocation process and the steps needed to secure one is crucial. This guide provides a comprehensive overview, detailing scholarship limits for women’s soccer by division and offering strategies to enhance your likelihood of receiving a scholarship offer.
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New NCAA Women’s Soccer Scholarship Limits
Starting in the 2025-2026 academic year, the NCAA eliminated most D1 scholarship limits, enabling all sports to distribute scholarships more flexibly among athletes. This change is expected to have a significant impact on college recruiting. More details and the latest updates here.
These changes impact women’s soccer players in the following ways:
- D1 women’s soccer programs will be allowed to offer 28 scholarships, up from the current limit of 14.
- D1 women’s soccer will have a maximum roster limit of 28.
- D1 women’s soccer is already an equivalency sport and will continue to offer both partial and full scholarships to recruits.
Note: These are the maximum scholarship and roster limits set by the NCAA, but schools aren’t required to meet these maximums.
Number of women’s college soccer scholarships by division level
Here’s the breakdown of soccer scholarships for each division level as they stand right now, along with a look at the new NCAA scholarship and roster limits for the 2025-2026 academic year:
| Division Level | Number of Teams | Average Roster Size | Current Scholarship Limit | 2025-26 Scholarship Limit* | 2025-26 Roster Limit* | Scholarship Type |
| D1 | 336 | 31.2 | 14 | 28 | 28 | Equivalency |
| D2 | 263 | 31.5 | 9.9 | 9.9 | 9.9 | Equivalency |
| D3 | 424 | 27 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| NAIA | 202 | 25 | 12 | 12 | 12 | Equivalency |
| NJCAA | 231 | 19 | 24 | 24 | 24 | Equivalency |
Average women’s college soccer scholarship amount
According to Worldmetrics, the average scholarship amount for a women’s soccer player in NCAA Division 1 is about $12,742 per year. It’s important to note that coaches are not required to give out full scholarships to their athletes and can instead break up available funding however they want. So, for a D1 team with 28 roster spots, a coach could give out 14 full-ride scholarships, or 28 scholarships that cover half the tuition.
Schools aren’t required to provide the maximum scholarships allowed by the NCAA. The number of scholarships available depends on various factors, such as whether the program is fully or partially funded. This flexibility helps programs to customize their scholarship distribution to better support their athletes and meet their team’s specific needs.
Additionally, the cost of tuition at each college and university is going to vary. An in-state student at a public university could pay close to $11,000 a year, while an out-of-state student at a private university could pay $39,000 a year. This significant difference makes calculating an average scholarship amount misleading.
Furthermore, not all athletes receive scholarships all four years of their college women’s soccer career.
We recommend families first figure out how much they are willing to pay for four years of college. Then, while going through the recruiting process, student-athletes can compare offers based on their family’s expected contribution-the amount they will pay out of pocket after factoring in all scholarship dollars.
What are my chances of playing women’s soccer in college and getting a scholarship?
Getting a scholarship for women’s soccer can be difficult. Only the top high school athletes make it to the level of playing women’s soccer in college. In fact, only about 2% of high school women’s soccer players go on to compete at the NCAA D1 level. Approximately 7% of U.S. high school women’s soccer players go on to compete in college across NCAA Division 1, Division 2, Division 3, NAIA, and junior college levels.
About 3% of college women’s soccer players are international recruits.
How many scholarships for D1 women’s soccer?
Starting in the 2025-26 school year, a new NCAA rule will lift the scholarship limits for D1 women’s soccer. However, teams will need to keep their roster to 28 players. Since women’s soccer is an equivalency sport, all rostered athletes are eligible to receive either full or partial scholarships.
Keep in mind that 28 represents the maximum number of scholarships, but some D1 women’s soccer programs might have a smaller number of scholarships available due to budget limits.
D2 Women’s soccer scholarships
There are 9.9 scholarships available to women’s soccer players at the D2 level. D2 schools can offer full-ride soccer scholarships. However, because women’s soccer is deemed an equivalency sport by the NCAA, schools are not required to give out full rides. It’s up to the coach to determine how much money they want to give to each athlete on the team.
D3 Women’s Soccer scholarships
While D3 schools don’t offer athletic scholarships, most D3 athletes do receive other forms of financial aid.
Student-athletes interested in competing at a D3 school shouldn’t let the lack of soccer scholarships deter them. For those who have good grades and test scores, there’s a good chance they’ll qualify for an academic scholarship.
Student-athletes engaged in extracurricular activities and community service might qualify for merit-based scholarships. Additionally, families can access need-based financial aid, which is determined by factors such as household income.
The key takeaway is that soccer scholarships are just one of many options for funding college. Numerous other scholarships are available, and if a D3 program is interested in a player, they can often assist in securing financial aid from other sources.
Insider Tip: Looking for scholarships near you? Explore women’s soccer scholarships by state.
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