[HALL OF FAME] Coach Bruce Arena, widely considered the USA’s most successful coach for his achievements at the college, MLS and international level, finished first in voting among 2009 National Soccer Hall of Fame “Builder” candidates but failed to reach the 50 percent threshold needed for induction. Also, no “Veteran Players” tallied enough votes for 2009 induction.
“We are disappointed in this result,” Hall of Fame President Steve Baumann said. “There were several strong candidates on each ballot, but our voters have determined that none reached Hall of Fame standard at this time.
“As we do at the end of each election cycle, the Hall of Fame staff and the Eligibility and Awards Committee of the Board of Directors will dig into the results and the voting patterns to determine if we have a process that best serves soccer in the United States.”
THE TOP FIVE BUILDERS
Bruce Arena 32 votes 47.76%
Bob Gansler 31 votes 46.27%
Francisco Marcos 26 votes 38.81%
Tony DiCicco 24 votes 35.82%
Robert Kraft 22 votes 32.84%
THE TOP FIVE VETERAN PLAYERS
Kyle Rote Jr. 25 votes 44.64%
Glenn Myernick 23 votes 41.07%
George Best 21 votes 37.50%
Teofilo "Nene" Cubillas 20 votes 36.71%
Shep Messing 19 votes 33.93%