MLS awards finalists, announcement schedule
Goalkeeper of the Year and Fair Play Award winners first to be unveiled
The 2008 awards announcements culminate on Saturday, Nov. 22 with the unveiling of Major League Soccer's Best XI and the Comeback Player of the Year, which will both be announced at the MLS Awards Gala taking place in Los Angeles on the eve of MLS Cup 2008.
The finalists, listed in alphabetical order below for each award, earned the most votes in polling of MLS players, general managers, coaches, referees and members of the media. The U.S. Soccer Foundation & MLS W.O.R.K.S. Humanitarian of the Year will be determined by representatives from the U.S. Soccer Foundation and MLS W.O.R.K.S., and will be announced on Friday, Nov. 7.
2008 Major League Soccer Awards Finalists
Panasonic Goalkeeper of the Year Finalists
Jon Busch - Chicago Fire
William Hesmer - Columbus Crew
Matt Reis - New England Revolution
Fair Play Finalists - Individual
Juan Pablo Angel - New York Red Bulls
Michael Parkhurst - New England Revolution
Chris Rolfe - Chicago Fire
MLS Comeback Player of the Year Finalists
Jon Busch - Chicago Fire
Kenny Cooper - FC Dallas
Santino Quaranta - D.C. United
Visa Defender of the Year Finalists
Jimmy Conrad - Kansas City Wizards
Chad Marshall - Columbus Crew
Bakary Soumare - Chicago Fire
adidas Referee of the Year Finalists
Michael Kennedy
Jair Marrufo
Terry Vaughn
Gatorade Rookie of the Year Finalists
Geoff Cameron - Houston Dynamo
Kheli Dube - New England Revolution
Sean Franklin - Los Angeles Galaxy
MLS Coach of the Year Finalists
Dominic Kinnear - Houston Dynamo
Sigi Schmid - Columbus Crew
Frank Yallop - San Jose Earthquakes
Volkswagen MLS Most Valuable Player Finalists
Cuauhtémoc Blanco - Chicago Fire
Landon Donovan - Los Angeles Galaxy
Guillermo Barros Schelotto - Columbus Crew
Newcomer of the Year
Darren Huckerby - San Jose Earthquakes
Claudio Lopez - Kansas City Wizards
Andre Rocha - FC Dallas
Schedule of Awards Announcements:
Tuesday, November 4
Panasonic Goalkeeper of the Year
Fair Play Award Individual & Team
Thursday, November 6
Visa Defender of the Year
adidas Referee of the Year
Friday, November 7
US Soccer Foundation & MLS W.O.R.K.S. Humanitarian of the Year
Tuesday, November 11
MLS Newcomer of the Year
MLS Coach of the Year
Thursday, November 13
Gatorade Rookie of the Year
Wednesday, November 19
Sierra Mist Goal of the Year
Thursday, November 20
Volkswagen MLS Most Valuable Player
Saturday, November 22
MLS Best XI
MLS Comeback Player of the Year
About Major League Soccer
Headquartered in New York City, Major League Soccer is the top-flight professional soccer league in the United States and features many stars from the U.S. and around the world. Now in its 13th season, the 14 teams in MLS are: the Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, Chivas USA, Columbus Crew, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Kansas City Wizards, Los Angeles Galaxy, New York Red Bulls, New England Revolution, Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes and Toronto FC. Seattle Sounders FC will join the League in 2009 and a Philadelphia expansion team will debut in 2010. MLS Cup 2008 will be held Nov. 23 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. For more information about MLS, log on to the League's official Web site at www.MLSnet.com.
