The National Soccer Hall of Fame on Tuesday announced the Player Eligibility List for the 2022 election. Three players with ties to the Seattle soccer community – Brad Evans, Clint Dempsey and Yael Averbuch – will be in their first year of eligibility for this prestigious honor.
Evans spent nine seasons with the Seattle Sounders, helping the team win four U.S. Open Cups, the 2014 Supporters’ Shield and the 2016 MLS Cup. After calling an end to his glittering professional soccer career, which included 27 caps with the United States Men’s National Team, Evans returned to the Pacific Northwest and rejoined the Sounders as a Brand Ambassador.
Dempsey, who retired during the 2018 season, is one of the most decorated American professional soccer players of all time. Following a stint in England in which he broke all kinds of barriers for Americans abroad, Dempsey returned stateside in 2013 and immediately became one of the most prolific attacking players in MLS history. In five and a half seasons in Rave Green, the Texas native racked up 53 and 29 assists across the MSL regular season and postseason. Dempsey also notched 141 caps with the USMNT, including trips to three World Cups, and finished his career as the tied atop the all-time scorers list for the Stars & Stripes.
A talented defender, Averbuch spent one season with Reign FC in 2018 in the final season of her fantastic career across European and American soccer. She collected 26 caps with the U.S. Women’s National Team and was named the Executive Director of the National Women’s Soccer League Players Association in 2019. Averbuch was most recently named Interim General Manager and Head of Soccer Operations for NWSL's Gotham FC.
You can find the full list for the 2022 National Soccer Hall of Fame election HERE.
