U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame: Ranking Next Year's Best XI Candidates

On May 30, the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame will induct the 2012 class. The class features former national team stars Claudio Reyna, Tony Meola and Desmond Armstrong as well as former women's national team coach Tony DiCicco.

As those four luminaries gain entrance to the Hall of Fame, let's take a look at the folks who should be receiving consideration next year.

To be eligible as a player, a candidate must have been retired for three full calendar years and have played either 20 full international games for the U.S. or played at least five seasons in an American first-division professional league and been named an all-star at least once.

To be eligible as a "builder", a candidate must be at least 50 years old and have contributed at the requisite level for a minimum of 10 years.

With that in mind, here are my starting XI who should be getting consideration for the 2013 class.

No. 11: Aly Wagner

From 1998 to 2008, Aly Wagner made 131 appearances for the U.S. women's national team.

She played in the 2003 and 2007 Women's World Cups and was a crucial piece of the 2004 Olympic team that brought home the gold medal.

Over her international career, Wagner scored 21 times and tallied 42 assists.

No. 10: Ante Razov

Ante Razov is fourth on the all-time list of MLS goal scorers. He played in the league's first 13 seasons and left his mark in the hearts and memories of both Chicago Fire and Chivas USA fans.

During his seven years with the Chicago, he led the team in scoring five times and brought home an MLS Cup and three U.S. Open Cups.

Razov earned 25 caps for the national team, but never made a World Cup roster.

No. 9: Clive Charles

The late Clive Charles began his footballing life as a player at West Ham United. He made his way to the United States in the late 1970s to play for the Portland Timbers. But he made his real mark on U.S. soccer during his 17 years coaching at the University of Portland.

Charles took over the men's program in 1986 and added the women's team to his portfolio in 1989. During his tenure, Charles racked up a combined record of 439-144-44.

Under Charles, Portland's teams won 13 conference titles, made 20 NCAA tournaments and had seven Final Four appearances.

Charles' women's team captured the 2002 national championship while the coach balanced his coaching duties with his treatment regimen for the prostate cancer that would kill him shortly after the season.

In addition to his time at Portland, Charles held various roles with the national team program. He was head coach for the 2000 Olympic team that finished fourth at the Sydney games.

During his collegiate career, Charles helped launch the careers of Kasey Keller, Steve Cherundolo, Tiffeny Milbrett and Shannon MacMillan, all of whom should eventually join him in the Hall of Fame.

No. 8: Shannon MacMillan

For this slot, we'll put the student one spot ahead of the teacher. After starring for Clive Charles at the University of Portland, Shannon MacMillan went on to a long and distinguished career with the national team.

MacMillan is the seventh-leading goal scorer in the history of the U.S. women's team. She scored 60 times while earning 176 caps over a twelve year span.

She won Olympic gold in 1996 and World Cup glory in 1999.

In 2002, MacMillan was named U.S. Soccer's Female Athlete of the Year.

No. 7: Carlos Valderrama

Carlos Valderrama brought his crazy hair and fluid game to Major League Soccer in its inaugural season in 1996. The same year, he was named the league's very first Most Valuable Player.

During the Colombian's seven seasons in MLS, he played for the Tampa Bay Mutiny, Miami Fusion and Colorado Rapids. But everywhere he went, the assist numbers piled up high.

By the time he retired in 2002, Valderrama had dished out 114 assists, second on the all-time assist list.

In 2005, Valderrama was named to the MLS All-Time Best XI.

No. 6: Jason Kreis

Younger fans know Jason Kreis as the head coach of Real Salt Lake, but those with a bit more experience will remember him as the fifth-highest goal scorer in the history of Major League Soccer.

Kreis played more than 300 times in MLS, first for the Dallas Burn and later for Real Salt Lake.

He was the first player in league history to score 100 goals. Kreis was named an all-star five times and in 1999, became the first American-born player to receive the league MVP honor.

No. 5: Joe-Max Moore

Joe-Max Moore is one of only twelve men who have earned 100 caps for the U.S. national team.

He tallied 24 goals (fifth highest all time) and played in three World Cups (1994, 1998 and 2002).

At club level, Moore began his career in Germany before returning to the newly formed MLS.

During his first four-year stint with the New England Revolution, Moore produced consistently culminating in his inclusion in the 1999 All-Star team.

A three season move to Everton followed where Moore started brightly, but faded before returning to finish his career with the Revolution.

No. 4: Cindy Parlow

Cindy Parlow ranks sixth in the all-time goal scoring charts for the U.S. women's national team. For younger readers, Parlow was the Abby Wambach of her era.

She scored 75 goals in her 158 appearances before having her career cut short by post-concussion syndrome.

Parlow won three collegiate titles in her time at North Carolina and was twice voted college player of the year.

She played in two World Cups and three Olympics between 1996-2004 and helped launch the first version of women's professional soccer in the United States, leading the Atlanta Beat to the playoffs in each of the league's three seasons.

No. 3: Marco Etcheverry

Marco Etcheverry was quite simply one of the best midfielders to ever play in Major League Soccer.

He joined DC United during the league's inaugural campaign in 1996 and promptly led the club to the title in three of the first four seasons.

Etcheverry was league MVP in 1998 and voted to the MLS All-Time Best XI team in 2005.

He recorded 34 goals and 101 assists during eight seasons with United.

No. 2: Sigi Schmid

Sigi Schmid is the kind of person the "builder" category at the Hall of Fame was created for. No one has built the game through coaching to a greater extent than the man currently stalking the Seattle Sounders' sidelines.

He spent 19 years as the head coach at UCLA winning three collegiate championships and developing a reputation for churning out stacks of players who went on to represent their country with the national team.

After leaving UCLA, Schmid entered the professional ranks with the Los Angeles Galaxy where he won the first of his MLS titles. He later picked up a second with the Columbus Crew.

He is a two-time MLS coach of the year and has more coaching victories than anyone else in the league's history.

No. 1: Brandi Chastain

I'm going to go out on a pretty secure limb here and say that Brandi Chastain is the most famous female soccer player in the history of the women's game.

Before you cry foul, think about all the people who don't care about soccer and care even less about women's soccer. They still know Brandi because she took her shirt off at the 1999 World Cup.

But despite all the attention she's gotten since taking her shirt off, Chastain is also one of the best to ever put the United States jersey on.

She played on the national team for 16 years earning 192 caps. She scored 30 goals, including the penalty kick 1999 which could be the most significant strike by a U.S. woman in history.

Chastain is in the top 15 all-time in both goals and assists. That comes while playing most of her career as a defender.

All that to say, Chastain may be famous for taking her shirt off. But she should be a shoo-in for the 2013 Hall of Fame class for what she did with it on.