Major League Soccer legends Taylor Twellman, Marco Etcheverry and Chris Armas are among the 22 names on the player ballot, while MLS Commissioner Don Garber joins coaching icons Bob Bradley and Sigi Schmid in the builders category for the National Soccer Hall of Fame Class of 2013 elections, announced on Friday.
Real Salt Lake head coach Jason Kreis and his D.C. United counterpart Ben Olsen are also on the players list, while Sporting Kansas City boss Peter Vermes is one of 15 names on the builders list up for induction.
Voting will begin immediately for each of the three categories and will runs through Feb. 22, with the election results expected to be announced shortly after. The Class of 2013 induction ceremony details will be announced at a later date.
Twellman and Olsen are both in their first year of eligibility, along with two-time MLS champion midfielder Wade Barrett, two-time women's national team Olympic gold medalist Angela Hucles, and 2002 US national team World Cup defender Tony Sanneh.
"We are excited to begin the process of selecting the National Soccer Hall of Fame Class of 2013 later this year," said Hank Steinbrecher, chairman of the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors. "The Hall of Fame is the most prestigious honor among the player, veteran and builder candidates who dedicated themselves to the sport. As usual there is a great mix of returning candidates and new names who are worthy of this award."
Of the 22 total players on the player ballot, Mauricio Cienfuegos, Roy Lassiter and Tisha Venturini-Hoch are in their final year of eligibility.
In order to be eligible for election as a player, an individual must be retired as a player for at least three years, but for no more than 10 years and have either: 1) played in at least 20 international games for the US, or 2) played at least five seasons in an American first division professional league and named to a postseason All-League or All-Star team at least once.
The voting pool includes all past and present full men's and women's national team coaches, all active MLS and NWSL head coaches with a minimum of four years of experience as a head coach in a first division league, MLS and NWSL management representatives, MLS Commissioner, NWSL executive director, US Soccer CEO/secretary general, US Soccer president, designated media members, and all Hall of Famers.
Each voter can list up to 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 dropped from the player ballot.
2013 National Soccer Hall of Fame Player Ballot
Chris Armas
Wade Barrett
Mauricio Cienfuegos^
Raúl Díaz Arce
Marco Etcheverry
Lorrie Fair
Robin Fraser
Chris Henderson
Angela Hucles
Jason Kreis
Roy Lassiter^
Shannon MacMillan
Joe-Max Moore
Victor Nogueira
John O'Brien
Ben Olsen
Cindy Parlow
Ante Razov
Tiffany Roberts
Tony Sanneh
Taylor Twellman
Tisha Venturini-Hoch^
First year of eligibility ^ Final year of eligibility; moves to Veteran ballot in 2014
In addition to the Player ballot, voting is also underway in the veteran player and builder categories. Fifteen players are up for selection on the veteran ballot, which is voted on only by current Hall of Famers after the list has been narrowed down by a screening committee.
Voters can name up to five 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 veteran appears on 50 percent of the ballots, then no one will be elected on this ballot in 2013. More than one candidate may be elected in the event of a tie.
Eligibility for the veteran ballot is the same as the player ballot except that a player must be retired for more than 10 years. Further, the US national team cap requirement is lowered from 20 to 10 if the 10 caps came before 1990.
2013 National Soccer Hall of Fame Veteran Ballot
George Best
Mike Burns
Julio "Ringo" Cantillo
Teofilo "Nene" Cubillas
John Doyle
Linda Hamilton
Mary Harvey
Lori Henry
Bill McPherson
Shep Messing
Glenn Myernick
John "Harp" O'Connell
Mike Sorber
Carlos Valderrama
Peter Vermes
The 2013 builder ballot includes 10 individuals selected by a screening committee and follows the same procedures for election as the beteran ballot, although the voting pool is expanded to also include select soccer administrators.
Builders are eligible by making their mark in the soccer community in a non-playing capacity while sustaining a major and positive impact on US Soccer at the national federation or first-division level for 10 years. Referees must serve as a FIFA referee for at least seven years to be eligible. (although a referee who has less than seven years as a FIFA international referee still can qualify for this list via 10 or more years as a United States first-division referee.)
2013 National Soccer Hall of Fame Builder Ballot
Esse Baharmast
Chuck Blazer
Bob Bradley
Bob Contiguglia
Don Garber
Burton Haimes
Tim Leiweke
Francisco Marcos
Fritz Marth
Sigi Schmid
