CHICAGO (March 20, 2019) - Ballots have been finalized for the National Soccer Hall of Fame Class of 2019 elections. Voting has begun and runs through Monday, April 1 for the Player, Veteran Player and Builder categories. The results of the voting will be announced at a later date.
Players in their first year of eligibility include Shannon Boxx, Edson Buddle, Rachel Van Hollebeke, Lori Chalupny, Lauren Holiday, Kenny Cooper, Todd Dunivant, Karina LeBlanc, Stephanie Cox, Heath Pearce, Troy Perkins, Cat Whitehill, Donovan Ricketts, Leigh Ann Robinson Brown, Homare Sawa, Bakary Soumare and Abby Wambach.
To be eligible for selection in the Player category, an individual must have been retired for at least three (3) full calendar years, but for no more than ten (10) full calendar years AND meet one (1) of the following criteria:
The voting committee includes all past and present Men's and Women's full National Team coaches, all active MLS and NWSL head coaches with a minimum of four years of experience as a head coach at the highest professional level in the United States, MLS and NWSL management representatives, the MLS Commissioner and NWSL President, U.S. Soccer CEO/Secretary General, U.S. Soccer President, designated media members and all Hall of Famers.
Each voter can select up to ten (10) candidates per ballot. Any player appearing on at least 66.7 percent of ballots will earn election, while any player who does not appear on at least five percent of ballots will be removed from voting contention until they qualify for the Veteran ballot.
Of the individuals on the Player ballot, 2002 FIFA World Cup defender Tony Sanneh, 2006 FIFA World Cup defender Ben Olsen and 2007 Concacaf Gold Cup champion Taylor Twellman are in their final year of eligibility.
2019 National Soccer Hall of Fame Player Ballot
David Beckham | Gregg Berhalter | Carlos Bocanegra | Shannon Boxx* | Edson Buddle* | Rachel Buehler Van Hollebeke* | Lori Chalupny* | Lauren Cheney Holiday* | Steve Cherundolo | Brian Ching | Kenny Cooper* | Jeff Cunningham | Todd Dunivant* | Kevin Hartman | Frankie Hejduk | Thierry Henry | Stuart Holden | Eddie Johnson | Chris Klein | Karina LeBlanc* | Amy LePeilbet | Eddie Lewis | Lori Lindsey | Stephanie Lopez Cox* | Pablo Mastroeni | Clint Mathis | Heather Mitts | Jaime Moreno | Ben Olsen | Pat Onstad | Heath Pearce* | Troy Perkins* | Steve Ralston | Cat Reddick Whitehill* | Donovan Ricketts* | Leigh Ann Robinson Brown* | Tony Sanneh** | Homare Sawa* | Kate Sobrero | Markgraf | Bakary Soumare* | Taylor Twellman** | Aly Wagner | Abby Wambach* | Josh Wolff
*First year of eligibility
**Final year of eligibility; moves to Veteran ballot in 2020
In addition to voting for Player candidates, voting will also open for the Veteran and Builder candidates. fourteen (14) veteran players are up for selection on the Veteran ballot, which has been narrowed down by a screening committee, and will be voted on by current Hall of Famers.
Voters can select up to ten (10) Veteran candidates, and the top vote-getter will be elected as long as he or she appears on a minimum of 50 percent of the ballots. If no individual appears on 50 percent of the ballots, then no Veteran will be elected to the 2019 Class. More than one (1) candidate may be elected in the event of a tie.
2019 National Soccer Hall of Fame Veteran Ballot
Chris Armas | Mike Burns | John Doyle | Lorrie Fair | Linda Hamilton | Mary Harvey | Chris Henderson | Lori Henry | Dominic Kinnear | Shep Messing | Tiffany Roberts | Mike Sorber | Greg Vanney | Tisha Venturini – Hoch
The 2018 Builder ballot includes eight (8) individuals selected by a screening committee and those who can vote U.S. Soccer Director of Officials; MLS and NWSL management representatives; MLS Commissioner; NWSL Executive Director; U.S. Soccer Secretary General; U.S. Soccer President; all Hall of Famers.
2019 National Soccer Hall of Fame Builder Ballot
Joe Cummings | Sunil Gulati | Sandra Hunt | Tim Leiweke | Francisco Marcos | Thom Meredith | Lothar Osiander | Kevin Payne | George Strawbridge
Complete information about the election and eligibility procedures is available online at ussoccer.com.
The election process is being administered by U.S. Soccer Federation staff under election and eligibility guidelines established by the Hall of Fame Board of Directors.
Established in 1950, the National Soccer Hall of Fame is dedicated to the sport of soccer in America by celebrating its history, preserving its legacy, inspiring its youth and honoring its heroes for generations to come.