Bay Area, NorCal high school soccer coaches rejoice as state championships come to California at long last
State soccer is coming to California high school competition.
For years, when the state’s high school players finished the California Interscholastic Federation NorCal and SoCal regional tournaments, they were done. There would be no additional game, no chance to test themselves against the best from the other part of the state.
After a years-long effort to institute state championship soccer games, the CIF will sponsor state soccer title matches beginning next winter.
The decision to add the championship games was approved unanimously at a recent CIF federated council meeting, according to spokesperson Rebecca Brutlag.
The news – seemingly unknown to many high school coaches contacted since the vote by the Bay Area News Group – elicited joyful responses, particularly among those who would have played in a state title game this past season.
“This topic was brought up during our postseason run,” said Everett Alvarez coach Gabriel Campos, who led the Salinas school to the NorCal Division I boys championship. “This news status was something we were not aware of. Although we would have loved the opportunity to play that CIF state championship this year, we look forward to the challenge and will use this as motivation to reach for a higher achievement.
“This is a great thing for NorCal soccer. For far too long, NorCal regions have been overlooked as powerhouse sections in soccer. This could give us the platform to show that we deserve to be on that stage.”
St. Francis coach Carlos Barboza, whose team won the NorCal Division I girls title, spoke after the Lancers’ win about the desire to face off against Southern California’s best team. He’s happy that day has now arrived.
“We’re really excited about the possibility of a CIF state championship for soccer,” Barboza said. “It’s something we’ve been talking about at St. Francis for the past few seasons, and we feel it would be a great step forward for the sport. Most other high school sports already have the opportunity to compete at the state level, and we think soccer should be no different.
“A state championship would not only give our student-athletes a chance to compete at the highest level, but it would also help elevate the profile of high school soccer across California.”
Archbishop Mitty coach JT Hanley, whose team lost to St. Francis in the girls NorCal Division I final, has been a proponent of state soccer for years. In his three decades of coaching at the high school level, he wasn’t always sure he’d see the day it came to fruition.
“You couldn’t find one person that would take a bet that it was going to happen, ever,” Hanley said. “This has actually been the first year I’ve been actively saying out loud to the underclassmen that the chances are really good that in a year, you’ll have an opportunity to compete to win an actual state championship.
“It means something to them. Where we’re at, the women’s basketball team is always in the conversation. The women’s volleyball team is always in the conversation. And so for these kids now to have the opportunity in their sport to at least get out there, it gives them an additional thing to motivate them, which is great.”
Not every coach was unconditionally elated. Mountain View coach Jim McGuirk, whose team won the NorCal Division II boys title – its first-ever regional crown – didn’t “have strong feelings one way or the other.”
“It’s cool we finally have it, as it would be fun to see how we stack up against the SoCal teams,” McGuirk said. “However, I am also aware of how long the season already is and how tough it is when it comes to the overlaps with club teams returning to action. Another week just makes it that much harder.”
The new state championship games will begin a week after the regionals conclude, which in 2026 will take place March 13-14. There will be five divisions for each gender, mirroring the current divisional setup in each region.
“Whenever CIF state soccer kicks off, it will be an amazing opportunity for the girls and boys who play winter soccer to chase the ultimate goal that other sports have had for many years,” said De La Salle coach Derricke Brown, whose team lost to Alvarez in the NorCal D-I boys final. “I’ve seen firsthand the tremendous value that these types of unique opportunities have for our student-athletes. I’m genuinely excited that a group of kids will be able to finally say that they are California state champions.”
Locations for the finals have not yet been determined. There are a number of factors to weigh – proximity, facilities availability and durability, just to name a few.
If 10 state title games were all to take place in the same location, much as many other state championships do, they would likely have to be on turf fields.
“Soccer is a challenge on a bunch of levels, one of which is, ‘OK, where are we going to do it?’” Hanley said. “The initial idea was that they would try to turn it into a real event. So they’d do it at Dignity Health Sports Park down in Southern California, or they do it at the Earthquakes stadium, or something like that.
“But the problem is, if you put it on natural grass, there’s no way you can play more than a couple games over the space of a couple days. No one’s going to let you play on a professional or a Division I quality grass field. They’re not going to let you play more than a game or two. So if there’s going to be 10 matches, then where do you put them?”
Hanley also noted that rain could cause issues with grass field availability, so a backup turf field would need to be secured somewhere in the area.
CIF could opt for a central location like Fresno State, which has both natural grass and artificial turf fields available. Other options within either half of the state include Stanford, Cal, San Jose State, UCLA and USC.
Plenty of potential avenues, to be sure. But more than anything, Bay Area players and coaches are just excited to have the chance to compete for a state title.
“I know the girls were bummed, because we knew it was coming,” Barboza said after the Lancers won the girls NorCal D-I championship. “We actually went down to play a tournament to play those teams, and it was awesome for the girls. I’m looking forward to playing teams that you’ll never see otherwise.”
The views of many players were summed up by St. Francis sophomore Miliani Makasini, who scored the winning goal in the regional final.
Of the opportunity to play in a state final, she simply said, “We need one.”
Starting next year, the regional victors – whether they be the Lancers, or Mitty, or Mountain View, or Bishop O’Dowd, or St. Ignatius, or Everett Alvarez, or De La Salle, or Dougherty Valley, or Bellarmine – will get their shot.