HOUSTON, TX --
Houston Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear was listed on the National Soccer Hall of Fame's 2009 player ballot when it was released yesterday.
Kinnear earned 54 caps for the United States national team and played professionally in Scotland, the United States, and Mexico from 1986-2000. He played with such notable clubs as Necaxa, the Colorado Rapids, the San Jose Clash, and the Tampa Bay Mutiny. For the United States, he scored nine goals and had two assists, leading the United States in scoring in 1993. In his five-year MLS career, he scored six goals and recorded 26 assists. He captained the Mutiny to the 1999 MLS Cup playoffs.
After his playing career, Kinnear moved into the coaching ranks as an assistant coach with the San Jose Earthquakes. He took over the head coaching job in 2004 and led the Earthquakes to the MLS Supporters' Shield in 2005. Raised in Fremont, Calif., Kinnear moved with the franchise to Houston in 2006 and has led the Dynamo to back-to-back MLS Cup championships in 2006 and 2007 and first place in the Western Conference in 2008. His career regular season coaching winning percentage of .601 (66-35-53) is the best in MLS history.
The voting period runs from November 3 to December 3. Voters include selected members of the media, current National Soccer Hall of Famers, past and present United States national team coaches and select MLS coaches, and selected soccer administrators. The newest members of the National Soccer Hall of Fame will be announced on January 15 at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Convention in St. Louis.
ABOUT THE HOUSTON DYNAMO
The Houston Dynamo will continue their pursuit of a third consecutive MLS Cup title on Sunday afternoon with their first home playoff game, set to kick off at 2:00 p.m. at Robertson Stadium against the New York Red Bulls. The teams tied the first leg 1-1, and the winner of Sunday's game will advance to the Western Conference championship. For more information, please log on to www.HoustonDynamo.com or call (713) 276-7500.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL SOCCER HALL OF FAME
Located in Oneonta, N.Y., the National Soccer Hall of Fame opened a new 30,000 sq.ft., state-of-the-art multimedia museum in 1999. The Hall of Fame tells the story of soccer in America through artifacts, photographs, video and written narratives. The main VideoWall portrays some of the greatest moments and the greatest goals in soccer history as well as live soccer action from the World Cup, MLS, and U.S. Soccer matches. The Hall features an extensive interactive, youth oriented Kicks Zone, including a kid-sized indoor field, where visitors have fun kicking, heading and playing video soccer games. Unique and rare artifacts on exhibit range from The Dewar Cup, the oldest team trophy in U.S. sport, to the Women's World Cup won by the USA in 1999, the uniforms of Pele and Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly's golden shoes, and NASL championship rings. That and so much more are all at the National Soccer Hall of Fame. In addition to the interactive Museum, the National Soccer Hall of Fame's 61-acre complex boasts the Kicks Hall of Fame Museum Store, a research library, four world-class soccer fields and office/meeting facilities. Visit the Hall of Fame at www.soccerhall.org.
