US Soccer announced the full class of 2016 nominees for the National Soccer Hall of Fame on Tuesday, with a trio of former MLS players now eligible on their first ballot.
Longtime MLS striker Jeff Cunningham, the second-leading scorer in the history of the league, former Chicago, Kansas City, D.C. and USMNT striker Josh Wolff and nine-year MLS veteran Wilman Conde are nominated for the first time. Former US women’s national team standouts Brandi Chastain, Heather Mitts and Aly Wagner are also in their first year of eligibility.
In order to be eligible for election in the Player category, an individual must be retired for at least three full calendar years, but for no more than 10 full calendar years. They must have either played in at least 20 full international games for the US (if played prior to 1990, the game requirement is reduced to 10 games) or played at least five seasons in an American first-division professional league and named to a postseason league All-Star team at least once.
Voting will begin on Tuesday and run for three weeks, with the results announced shortly after the deadline.
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 at the highest level in the United States, MLS and NWSL management representatives, the MLS and NWSL Commissioners, US Soccer CEO/Secretary General, US Soccer President, designated media members and all current 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 removed from voting contention until they qualify for the veteran ballot.
Twenty-eight players are currently on the ballot. Seattle Sounders technical director Chris Henderson, 2002 World Cup star John O’Brien and 1999 Women’s World Cup champion Tiffany Roberts are in their final year of eligibility.
US Soccer also announced the Hall of Fame nominees for the Veteran and Builder categories. FC Dallas head coach Oscar Pareja, Toronto FC assistant Robin Fraser and Real Salt Lake assistant Richie Williams are among those nominated in the Veteran category, while MLS Commissioner Don Garber and former USMNT head coach Steve Sampson are up for election in the Builder category.
Voters can name up to five Veteran 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 individual appears on 50 percent of the ballots, then no Veteran will be elected to the 2016 Class. More than one candidate may be elected in the event of a tie.
The Builder voting follows the same procedures for election as the Veteran ballot, although the voting pool is expanded to also include select soccer administrators.
Complete information about the election and eligibility procedures can be found at USSoccer.com.
The full list of nominees in the Player, Veteran and Builder categories can be found below:
2016 National Soccer Hall of Fame Player Ballot
Chris Armas
Gregg Berhalter
Brandi Chastain
Wilman Conde
Jimmy Conrad
Jeff Cunningham
Frankie Hejduk
Chris Henderson
Chris Klein
Jason Kreis
Eddie Lewis
Clint Mathis
Kate (Sobrero) Markgraf
Tiffeny Milbrett
Heather Mitts
Jaime Moreno
John O'Brien
Ben Olsen
Pat Onstad
Steve Ralston
Ante Razov
Tiffany Roberts
Tony Sanneh
Briana Scurry
Lindsay Tarpley
Taylor Twellman
Aly Wagner
Josh Wolff
First year of eligibility
Final year of eligibility; moves to Veteran ballot in 2017
2016 National Soccer Hall of Fame Veteran Ballot
Mark Chung
Troy Dayak
Danielle Fotoloulos
Robin Fraser
Brian Kamler
Manny Lagos
Shannon MacMillan
Oscar Pareja
Evan Whitfield
Richie Williams
2016 National Soccer Hall of Fame Builder Ballot
Esse Baharmast
Bob Contiguglia
Don Garber
Joe Machnik
Francisco Marcos
Fritz Marth
Steve Sampson
