Don’t forget to keep voting for the 2012 MLS All-Star game as the MLS All-Stars host UEFA Champions League winners Chelsea FC on July 25, at PPL Park in Philadelphia.
There has been a huge initial response to online and text voting and now voting via Twitter begins on Thursday. Twitter voting will run from noon ET on Thursday, June 21, through 11:59 pm ET on Friday, June 22. The terms for Twitter voting are as follows:
MLS All-Star 2012
- An eligible vote consists of #MLSAllStar and the player's full name (first and last required), with or without a space.
- A user may vote for multiple players in a tweet; however, a user may not vote for a single player multiple times within one tweet.
- All users must follow @MLS for their votes to be eligible.
Fan voting via online ballot and texting continues, and after 10 days of voting, Dan Kennedy, Aurélien Collin, David Beckham and Chris Wondolowski lead their respective positions.
Fans can vote until July 2 online at MLSsoccer.com and also by texting a player's last name only to 22442. Online and text voting concludes July 2 at 5 pm ET.
The 11 players with the highest combined online, text and Twitter fan votes will become the First XI All-Stars and will be unveiled on Sunday, July 8, at halftime of the Chicago Fire vs. LA Galaxy match. One of those 11 spots is automatically claimed by the player that earns the most text votes.
The gameday roster to face Chelsea on July 25 (8:30 pm ET, ESPN2, TeleFutura, TSN and RDS) will be selected by the All-Star manager from the First XI as voted by fans, two Commissioner's picks and the pool of players who received votes from at two fellow players.
The final squad list will be unveiled on Sunday, July 15, at halftime of the New York Red Bulls vs. Seattle Sounders match.
Top five players in text votes: 1. Chris Wondolowski (SJ) 2. Jimmy Nielsen (SKC) 3. Eric Brunner (POR) 4. Graham Zusi (SKC) 5. Nat Borchers (RSL)
Top five forwards: 1. Chris Wondolowski, F (SJ) 2. Thierry Henry, F (NY) 3. Fredy Montero, F (SEA) 4. Kenny Cooper, F (NY) 5. Robbie Keane, F (LA)
Top five midfielders: 1. David Beckham, M (LA) 2. Landon Donovan, M (LA) 3. Dwayne De Rosario, M (DC) 4. Kyle Beckerman, M (RSL) 5. Brek Shea, M (DAL)
Top five defenders: 1. Aurélien Collin, D (SKC) 2. Jay DeMerit, D (VAN) 3. Jámison Olave, D (RSL) 4. Geoff Cameron, D (HOU) 5. Nat Borchers, D (RSL)
Top five goalkeepers: 1. Dan Kennedy, (CHV) 2. Jimmy Nielsen, (SKC) 3. Nick Rimando, (RSL) 4. Kevin Hartman, (DAL) 5. Andy Gruenebaum, (CLB)
