WASHINGTON – Saint Louis was the unanimous pick to win the 2026 Atlantic 10 Conference men's soccer title in balloting conducted by the A-10's head coaches, the league announced today.

In addition, four Billikens earned spots on the 11-man preseason All-Conference squad – forward Theo Franca and defenders Luke Adams, JC Cortez and Carlos Leatherman.

The Billikens, ranked No. 4 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, return 21 players from last year's team that won the A-10 regular-season and tournament championship. SLU advanced to the Men's College Cup for the first time since 1997.

Franca was named to the A-10 All-Rookie Team and was named to the A-10 All-Championship Team a season ago. He finished second on the Bills in goals (5) and points (11).

Cortez and Leatherman were key members of the Billikens' defensive unit that posted the league's lowest goals against average in 2025. Leatherman was a second-team All-Conference selection a year ago. Adams enters his first season as a Billiken after spending last year at Tulsa, where he was named All-Region in addition to claiming conference Defender of the Year accolades.

The Billikens received all 13 first-place votes and totaled 169 points to earn the top spot in the conference's preseason poll. Dayton was picked second with 146 points, followed by George Mason (136), Fordham (132) and VCU (120).

Since 2005, the Billikens have been picked No. 1 in the A-10 preseason poll on 12 occasions.

SLU opens the regular season on Thursday, Aug. 20, when it hosts Seattle at Hermann Stadium. Game time is 7 p.m.