Rafael Costa enters his second season leading the Mississippi Christian men's soccer program in 2026 after taking the Choctaws to the most successful season in program history in his first year at the helm.
Costa guided Mississippi Christian to a 15-4-3 record in 2025 and an unbeaten 9-0-2 mark in Gulf South Conference play, leading the Choctaws to the GSC regular-season championship. The historic campaign continued into the NCAA Tournament, where Mississippi Christian defeated Florida Tech and No. 2 Lynn to reach the NCAA Division II Elite Eight for the first time in program history. Costa was named the 2025 GSC Coach of the Year.
The success extended to the individual level, with Mississippi Christian producing one of the most decorated seasons in program history. Seven Choctaws earned All-GSC honors, including GSC Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year Sergio Garrido, GSC Goalkeeper of the Year Cole Turner and GSC Freshman of the Year Russell Berko. Garrido and Berko earned D2CCA All-American honors, while seven players were named D2CCA All-South Region and five earned United Soccer Coaches All-South Region recognition.
Costa returned to his alma mater after serving as an assistant coach for the men's and women's programs at Holmes Community College. He also coached with MS Rush United in the Elite Club National League and previously held coaching positions at Starkville High School and Tupelo Futbol Club. He served as a volunteer assistant at Mississippi College in 2019 and 2021.
Before beginning his coaching career, Costa was a standout midfielder for Mississippi College from 2017-18. He was a two-year letterwinner and earned First Team All-GSC and D2CCA All-South Region Second Team honors in 2018. Costa was later selected to the Mississippi College Men's Soccer All-Decade Team and received the program's Outstanding Senior Letterman Award in 2019.
A native of the Mississippi College soccer program, Costa earned a master's degree in Professional Communication in Sports from MC in 2019. He now enters his second season directing a program coming off its first GSC regular-season championship and first NCAA Division II Elite Eight appearance.
