COLUMBIA, Mo. – Paul Hart, currently the associate head coach at Stanford, has been named the third head coach in the history of Mizzou's soccer program, Director of Athletics Laird Veatch announced Tuesday.
Hart, a native of London, England, brings more than 15 years of collegiate coaching experience and an extensive track record of recruiting and developing elite talent. During his six seasons at Stanford, Hart helped guide the Cardinal to three consecutive College Cup appearances, two national championship game appearances and an ACC regular-season and tournament championship. As Stanford's recruiting coordinator, he helped assemble five consecutive nationally ranked top-five recruiting classes, building a roster that has consistently competed among the nation's best.
Hart has agreed to a five-year contract at Mizzou and will remain with Stanford through the NCAA postseason. The Cardinal, ranked No. 1 nationally for much of 2026, will continue their season in the NCAA Tournament. The field will be announced Nov. 16.
Mizzou Athletics will formally introduce Hart at an event in Columbia at a later date.
"Paul has the experience, vision and championship pedigree we were looking for to lead Mizzou Soccer into its next era," Veatch said. "He has played an integral role in building an elite, nationally recognized program at Stanford, recruiting and developing some of the best players in the country and competing for national championships. We believe he has the leadership and expertise to elevate our program, and we're excited to welcome Paul to Columbia as we pursue sustained success and compete for championships."
"I'm incredibly honored and excited to become the head coach at the University of Missouri," Hart said. "Mizzou is a special place, with a tremendous university and a commitment to competing at the highest level. I'm grateful to Laird Veatch and Angie Jabir and everyone involved in this process. I'm eager to get to Columbia, build relationships with our student-athletes and begin the work of leading a program that our university and community will be proud to support. We have high expectations, and I'm excited about what we can accomplish together."
Hart joins Mizzou after six seasons at Stanford, where he was promoted to Catarina Macario Associate Head Coach following the 2025 campaign. In addition to coordinating the Cardinal's recruiting efforts, Hart helped lead player development, tactical preparation, opposition scouting and performance management. Stanford enjoyed one of the most successful seasons in program history in 2025, finishing 21-2-2 and advancing to the College Cup championship game for the second time in three seasons. The Cardinal captured their first ACC regular-season and tournament championships, while Hart and the coaching staff earned United Soccer Coaches Atlantic Region Staff of the Year recognition.
Stanford led the nation in scoring offense (3.84 goals per game), assists per game (3.76), total goals (96), total assists (94) and goal differential (+72). The Cardinal also produced a pair of United Soccer Coaches All-America first-team selections in Jasmine Aikey and Elise Evans, with Aikey earning the MAC Hermann Trophy as the nation's top player. Aikey was among several elite players Hart helped develop during his time at Stanford, which also included multiple MAC Hermann Trophy finalists and numerous conference award winners.
Hart helped Stanford reach the College Cup in each of his final three seasons, including national runner-up finishes in 2023 and 2025. In 2023, the Cardinal posted a 20-1-4 record, won the Pac-12 regular-season title and advanced to the national championship match. In 2024, Stanford advanced to the College Cup semifinals in its inaugural season in the ACC, becoming the only program to reach the national semifinals in consecutive seasons. The Cardinal also captured a Pac-12 championship in 2022, finishing 17-2-3 and limiting opponents to just 0.54 goals per match, the sixth-best mark nationally.
Throughout his time at Stanford, Hart helped develop some of the nation's top goalkeepers. Ryan Campbell earned 2023 Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Year honors after leading the conference in goals-against average and save percentage. In 2025, Caroline Birkel was named ACC Goalkeeper of the Year following her first season with the Cardinal. Hart's player development success also extends to the professional and international levels, having coached 23 players who have gone on to compete in the National Women's Soccer League, 10 who have played professionally in European leagues and three senior national team players since 2020.
Prior to Stanford, Hart spent the 2020-21 season as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Washington, helping the Huskies compile a 10-4-4 record and advance to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet Sixteen. Washington's goalkeepers allowed just 12 goals during the campaign, establishing a program record.
Hart previously served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Oklahoma for two seasons, including a three-month stint as interim head coach. He also spent time at San Francisco as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator from 2016-18. His coaching career began at UC Santa Barbara, where he served as goalkeeper coach for the men's and women's programs from 2012-14 before taking on additional responsibilities as the program's head strength and conditioning coach. During his tenure, the Gaucho men's and women's programs captured Big West championships in 2015, while the men's team also won conference titles in 2013 and 2014 and advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen in 2015.
A former professional goalkeeper, Hart was a four-time Lone Star Conference Goalkeeper of the Year at West Texas A&M, where he earned his bachelor's degree in kinesiology. He also holds a Master of Science degree in health promotion, with an emphasis in sports performance and injury prevention, from California University of Pennsylvania.