2011 NIRSA National Soccer Championship

In the finals, reigning runners-up, Missouri, would face the 2009 champions Weber State. Coming into the finals, neither team had given up a goal in the knockout round, including when Missouri required penalty kicks in the round of 16 vs Penn State which they won 0–0 after extra time and 3–0 in the shootout. In the finals, the game would remain tied 0–0 at the end of regular time and extra time, meaning a penalty shootout would decide the champion for the second time in three years. Missouri would kick first. The first 2 rounds saw all four kicks being saved while the next 3 rounds saw all six being scored, meaning an extra round of kicks would be needed. In the sixth round of kicks, Missouri would hit the crossbar while Korbin Tafoya of Weber State would score, giving Weber State the title, their second in three years and their third overall. Weber State's Cord Stimpson would be named men's championship MVP.^[2]

In the finals, regulars UC-Santa Barbara would return to their fifth straight women's championship finals to face finals debutants Cal Poly. Coming into the finals, UC-Santa Barbara won every game except the quarterfinals by at least 2 goals, including a 8–0 victory in the group stage. However, the quarterfinals did require extra time against Pitt, which they won 2–1. Meanwhile, Cal Poly tied their opener to eventual consolation champions Ohio State, but would win their next four games. In the finals, eventual women's championship MVP Laura Caparelli of UC-Santa Barbara would score in the 24th minute. This goal would be enough to separate the teams, leading UC-Santa Barbara to their sixth title and their fifth straight, the longest consecutive title streak across all four divisions. This title also gave them sole possession of the most titles for a single team with six, over taking BYU in the men's championship division.

In the finals, inaugural champions Texas "B" would face finals debutants UC-San Diego. Coming into the finals, Texas "B" would face another team that had another team playing in the championship division: Colorado "Black". Texas would win 3–1 then would beat Northeastern 2–0 in the semifinals. Meanwhile, UC-San Diego would require penalty kicks in both their knockout stage games, first against intra-city rivals San Diego State which they won 2–2 (4–3) then intrastate opponents USC 0–0 (5–4). In the finals, UC-San Diego would dominate winning 5–0 and claiming their first men's open title. UC-San Diego's James Somerville would be named men's open MVP.

In the finals, two teams would be making their first finals appearance: Missouri and UC-Berkeley. Coming into the finals, Missouri would win both games knockout games 2–0, first against 2009 women's open champions JMU and then against reigning women's open champions Illinois. Meanwhile, UC-Berkeley would require penalty kicks in their quarterfinal matchup against 2009 runners-up Oregon then would beat intrastate rivals USC 3–0. In the finals, Missouri would win 2–0 to claim their first women's open title.

The competition consisted of 80 teams: 48 championship division teams and 32 open division teams. Each of these divisions were further divided into two equal sized divisions for men and women. The championship division divided teams into eight groups of three teams each while the open division divided teams into four groups of four teams each, both engaging in a round-robin tournament that determined teams able to advance to a knockout stage. Pool play games were two 40-minute halves, separated by a seven-minute halftime and utilized the three points for a win system. After group stage play, the two highest ranked teams from each group advanced to their respective knockout stage. In the championship division, the third placed team advanced to a consolation bracket while in the open division, the third and fourth placed teams were eliminated.

Knockout stage games also consisted of two 40-minute halves. The round of 16 and quarterfinals were separated by a seven-minute halftime while the semifinals and finals had a ten-minute halftime. Knockout stage games needed to declare a winner, therefore if a game was tied at the end of regulation, one 15-minute, golden-goal overtime period would begin. If still tied after overtime, kicks from the mark would determine the winner.^[3]

Each of the six regions received three automatic bids for both the men's and women's championship that they awarded to its members. The final six bids were considered "at-large", and were given out by NIRSA to teams, typically based on their regional tournament results and RPI.^[4]

The 32 remaining teams participated in the open division, chosen on a first-come first-serve basis online on September 28, 2011^[5]