D.C. United founder and first executive Kevin Payne will be inducted into the club’s Hall of Tradition during their Oct. 2 match against New York City FC at RFK Stadium, it was announced Monday.
“We are proud to honor Kevin Payne, who helped build and establish this club and set an early standard for success in Major League Soccer,” D.C. United managing general partner Jason Levien said in a statement. “He brought passion and dedication to the team and the league, and the championships won during his tenure are cemented in club history.”
Payne (pictured above, left) put together the club’s first ownership group in 1994 and was a founding member of the MLS Board of Governors. When the league began in 1996, he served as D.C. United’s first president and general manager. One of 10 original MLS teams, the Black-and-Red went on to win the inaugural MLS Cup, the first of three championships in the league’s first four seasons and the first of the franchise’s league-leading 13 trophies.
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Outside of D.C. United, Payne served as a Board Member of the U.S. Soccer Federation from 1999-2014, and he maintains his positions as Board Member and Vice Chairman of the U.S. Soccer Foundation, which he’s held since 1999. He also served on the MLS Board of Governors and the MLS Competition Committee from its inception until September 2013. He chaired the U.S. Soccer Technical Committee from 2007-13 and remains on the Technical Working Group. From 2009-12, Payne served on the FIFA Global Committee for Club Football.
Payne will be the 11th inductee into the Hall of Tradition, joining John Harkes (2003), Marco Etcheverry (2007), Jeff Agoos (2008), Betty D’Anjolell (2008), Raul Diaz Arce (2009), Danilo Noel Dirón (2009), Eddie Pope (2010), Richie Williams (2011), Ben Olsen (2012) and Jaime Moreno (2013).
