What is RPI in college soccer?

Rating Percentage Index (RPI) is a mathematical system used to rank sports teams based upon a team’s wins and losses and its strength of schedule.

RPI is best known for its usage in college athletics, including for NCAA men’s soccer and women’s soccer. Exact calculations for RPI include some differences across different sports, but the general structure of the RPI is largely the same.

[READ: Best 25 NCAA men’s soccer programs of the past 5 years]

In its current formulation, the index comprises a team’s winning percentage (25%), its opponents’ winning percentage (50%), and the winning percentage of those opponents’ opponents (25%). The opponents’ winning percentage and the winning percentage of those opponents’ opponents both comprise the strength of schedule (SOS). Thus, the SOS accounts for 75% of the RPI calculation and is 2/3 its opponents’ winning percentage and 1/3 its opponents’ opponents’ winning percentages.

The website “RPI For Division I Women’s Soccer“, published by retired attorney and life-long soccer player and fan Chris Thomas, is a vast resource of soccer-specific RPI information.

For a complete breakdown of the entire RPI Formula for women’s soccer, Click Here.