MLS announced the 2016 AT&T All-Star Fan XI on Saturday afternoon, and the selection is a star-studded affair.
Fans voted in an array of global stars, USMNT standouts, and emerging young talents for the MLS All-Star team, which will face English Premier League side Arsenal FC on Thursday, July 28 at Avaya Stadium in San Jose, California (7:30 pm ET, ESPN, UniMás, TSN, RDS).
While 10 of the 11 players on the Fan XI were determined by online fan voting at MLSsoccer.com, the 11th player earned his spot through the AT&T/EA SPORTS “More Than a Vote” Challenge. In a close contest, New York City FC's David Villa, the current MLS top scorer, took the top prize as fans scored more than 800,000 goals with the NYCFC star in EA SPORTS FIFA.
2016 MLS All-Star Fan XI
Goalkeeper:Andre Blake (Philadelphia Union)
Defenders:Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Laurent Ciman (Montreal Impact), Keegan Rosenberry (Philadelphia Union)
Midfielders:Kaká (Orlando City SC), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Andrea Pirlo (New York City FC), Giovani dos Santos (LA Galaxy),
Forwards:Didier Drogba (Montreal Impact), Sebastian Giovinco (Toronto FC), David Villa (New York City FC – AT&T/EA SPORTS™ “More Than a Vote” Challenge)
The final 2016 AT&T MLS All-Star gameday roster will be announced on Sunday, July 17, and will include the two Commissioner’s Picks, as well as 20 players selected by All-Star team head coach Dominic Kinnear.
While the players named to the Fan XI are not guaranteed a spot on the gameday roster, the outcome of fan voting is taken into consideration as the 22-man roster is decided.
