Per press release: Board of Directors Revamps Election Procedures ONEONTA, NY (May 8, 2007) – At the April 28th Board Meeting the National Soccer Hall of Fame Board of Directors approved proposals that will significantly revamp the current election policies. Key changes were: - In the Player category any candidate receiving votes on seventy-five percent (75%) of the ballots cast shall be elected to membership in the National Soccer Hall of Fame. The old policy required fifty percent (50%) of the vote for election and provided for the election of the two highest vote-getters (with provision for a third if that individual received at least 80% of the vote), and - Players must receive a vote on a minimum of five percent (5%) of the ballots cast in the previous election in order to remain on the Players’ eligibility list. No such provision existed under the old policy. “These changes to the election policies set an appropriately high standard for election to the Hall of Fame and will remove players from the ballot who have not received significant support in the voting process,” Hall of Fame President George Brown stated. ”Players dropped from the eligibility list will automatically revert to the Veterans’ eligibility list when they meet the Veterans’ eligibility criteria.” The 75% election criterion would not have changed the results of any election since 2004, the last time the Hall of Fame implemented an election policy change. “Exactly the same players would have been elected under these new rules,” said Jack Huckel, Hall of Fame Director of Museum and Archives and the person at the Hall of Fame directly responsible for the election process. “Adding the 5% minimum criteria will thin our ballot appropriately. The 2008 ballot will have 22 holdover candidates for election rather than the 58 that would have been on the ballot without this new policy.” In addition to the policy changes made in the Player category, the Board approved changes governing elections to the Veteran Player and Builder categories. Complete details of the changes implemented can be reviewed on the Hall of Fame web site, www.soccerhall.org <http://www.soccerhall.org/> The National Soccer Hall of Fame located in Oneonta, N.Y., celebrates the history, honors the heroes and preserves the legacy of soccer in the United States. For more information, log on to soccerhall.org.