MLSsoccer.com's annual "Best Of" series expanded bigger than ever in 2012. We polled 20 of our editors, video producers, contributors and statistics specialists in 17 different categories this year to come up with the most comprehensive edition of the series' three-year history. Listed below are the panelists we polled this year. Prepare your criticisms accordingly.
| Panelist | Position | Comment |
|
Greg Lalas |
Editor-in-Chief |
Greg is the face of MLSsoccer.com's weekly video series Anatomy of a Goal and a regular on ExtraTime Radio and The Daily. He voted for Danny Califf's trade out of Philadelphia as the Transaction of the Year. |
|
Jonah Freedman |
Managing Editor |
Jonah is the host of the March to the Match podcast and the author of "The Throw-In" weekly column, appearing every Thursday. He voted for Houston's Will Bruin as the Breakthrough Player of the Year. |
|
Simon Borg |
Senior Editor |
Simon is the voice of the Instant Replay video series and a regular on ExtraTime Radio, as well as a regular author of "The Kick Off." He voted for Sporting KC's US Open Cup title as the Controversy of the Year. |
|
Nick Firchau |
Senior Editor |
Nick is the host of ExtraTime Radio and a regular on The Daily, as well as a a regular author of "The Kick Off." He voted for Vancouver's Davide Chiumiento for Assist of the Year. |
|
Matthew Doyle |
Armchair Analyst |
Matt is the author of the "Armchair Analyst" column appearing every Friday and the man behind the comments on the weekly MLS Power Rankings. He voted for Sacha Kljestan as the American Export of the Year. |
|
Andrew Wiebe |
New Media Editor |
Andrew creates the weekly "Rookie Rankings" column and the "OPTA Spotlight," and is a regular on ExtraTime Radio. He voted for Thierry Henry for Assist of the Year. |
|
Nick Rosano |
New Media Editor |
Nick is a regular on the Last Call video series every Friday during the regular season and has appeared on the March to the Match podcast. He voted for Real Salt Lake's Tony Beltran for Gaffe of the Year. |
|
Kristel Valencia |
Editor, |
Kristel is the voice of the Spanish language podcast Tiro Libre and runs FutbolMLs.com. She voted for David Beckham's departure as the Story of the Year. |
|
Jason Saghini |
Director of Video |
Jason is a regular on The Daily and runs the video department at MLSsoccer.com. He voted for San Jose's Victor Bernardez as the Transaction of the Year. |
|
Scott Riddell |
Senior Video Editor |
Scott is the man behind the Matchday 360 series on MLSsoccer.com as well as the Taking the Lead series on MLS captains. He voted for San Jose's win over LA at Stanford Stadium as the Game of the Year. |
|
Dan Haiek |
Video Producer |
Dan is the producer of the Last Call, Weekend Wrap and Scouting Report video series, and the producer of the ExtraTime Radio podcast. He voted for the Union's Michael Farfan as the Breakthrough Player of the Year. |
|
Jon Bettin |
Video Producer |
Jon is the producer of the Anatomy of a Goal and Instant Replay series, among others. He voted for Peter Nowak's firing in Philadelphia as the Controversy of the Year. |
|
Josh Whisenhunt |
MLS Insider |
Josh is the voice of the MLS Insider on Twitter and helps run the MLS Facebook page. He voted for the Union's Amobi Okugo as the Underrated Player of the Year. |
|
Charlie Boehm |
Contributor |
Charlie covers the US national team for the site and writes the "Starting XI" feature every Friday. He voted for Portland's Bright Dike as the Breakthrough Player of 2013. |
|
Joe Prince-Wright |
Contributor |
Joe is a regular contributor to "The Kick Off," a writer for The Guardian and a professional soccer player for Arbroath in the Scottish Second Division. He voted for D.C. United's Dwayne De Rosario for Assist of the Year. |
|
John Bolster |
Contributor |
John is the creator of "The Monday Postgame" on MLSsoccer.com and a features editor for Penthouse Magazine. He voted for San Jose's Victor Bernardez as the Transaction of the Year. |
|
Nate Sulat |
Contributor |
Nate is a former MLSsoccer.com intern and a regular host for live chats during game days. He voted for the Crew's Andy Gruenebaum as the Breakthrough Player of the Year. |
|
Sal Cipriano |
Contributor |
Sal is a regular host of live chats during game days on MLSsoccer.com and a lettering supervisor for DC Comics. He voted for Michael Bradley for American Export of the Year. |
|
Oren Pollak |
Operations, OPTA Sports |
Oren oversees a staff of OPTA statisticians covering MLS, Liga MX and prominent international games. He voted for Sporting KC's slow-motion dance as the Celebration of the Year. |
|
Todd Kingston |
Editor, OPTA Sports |
Todd is a regular contributor to the "OPTA Spotlight" column and he let Firchau borrow his mom's car at Thanksgiving. He voted for Jesse Marsch's departure from Montreal as the Controversy of the Year. |
|
Ben Jata |
Fantasy Expert, OPTA Sports |
Ben is the author of the "Fantasy Fixes" column on MLSsoccer.com during the regular season and playoffs. He voted for Toronto's Luis Silva as the Breakout Player of 2013. |
