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SBI Question of the Day: Who would you vote for in the U.S. Soccer presidential race?

The new year will bring a new U.S. Soccer president. On Feb. 10, one of eight candidates will replace Sunil Gualti and take charge of U.S. Soccer while ushering in a new era for the federation.

Paul Caligiuri, Kathy Carter, Carlos Cordeiro, Steve Gans, Kyle Martino, Hope Solo, Michael Winograd, and Eric Wynalda are all officially in the running for the upcoming election after completing a background check and receiving a letter of nomination from three organization members. Each candidate certainly brings unique experience and perspective to the role, creating a wide variety of options for voters to decide upon in February.

There are former players in Wynalda, Solo, Martino and Caligiuri. There are legal experts in Gans and Winograd and there are candidates familiar with the American soccer hierarchy in Cordeiro and Carter. The field is wide and filled with many different stances and perspective, ranging from the status quo all the way to candidates seeking a complete overhaul of the American system.

With that in mind, if you had a vote, who would you give it to knowing what you know now? Which candidate would you like to see voted in as U.S. Soccer president?

Vote in the poll below and discuss why you chose your candidate in the comment section.

[polldaddy poll=9905872]

Comments

  1. It’s hard to vote without knowing how the role will be split. The role grew significantly under Sunil’s tenure. As many have indicated, at a minimum there’s a USMNT/WNT aspect, there’s our national approach to young player development, and then there’s the business/marketing role. I don’t think any of these candidates can capably fill all of these roles- I think Sunil no longer could either. Is there one who can capably appoint, delegate, and lead?

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  2. I went with Winograd also. I love the way it gets ignored that he played professionally in Israel & he also helped get a team off the ground. Yes he didn’t do either of these for a long period of time, but he has some experience. Also if you listen to what he has to say he does have more of a plan than the other candidates. All that said you know this will end up either being a popularity contest or an inside job so he really doesn’t have a chance

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  3. US Soccer is a business entailing management of many subdivisions, not just the USMNT. I’d go with Kathy Carter because she has been in a leadership position inside of soccer management in the US, has played the game at a level that satisfies my need to have someone who understands the limits of her/his knowledge and will do an even-handed all-around good job.

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  4. how do the mechanics of the election work? 1 round, top vote-getter even if less than 50% or multiple rounds? how will it work? thanks.

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  5. First off, I’d like to thanks Sunil Gulati, Dan Garber and all the US Soccer staff coming to SBI and voting for Kathy Carter. We get it. You want her to do your bidding.

    If there’s really going to be change then we need new, outside, blood. I think Kyle Martino best represents what is possible. He’s super smart. He knows the game. He knows the American game. He’s mostly humble too. I think he’d do a smash up job.

    Eric Wynalda, who I love as a TV personality. I remember his Fox Football Fone In days. But leading US Soccer I don’t see. He’d be a great guy to focus on coaching or some other targeted job. He’s not a be-all leader in my opinion.

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  6. I hear everyone saying, need a soccer guy, not a business guy.

    I am not disagreeing with that, making money off of soccer seems easier than picking your nose, but we do need someone with IDEAS. Not just looking at other situations and saying, hey lets try that because it worked in whatever country is successful.

    The US is a completely different situation with so much money being offered for other sports moving soccer down the ladder for what many of the greatest athletes are playing.

    I have no idea who that person is. I just hope they are running and I hope they get chosen.
    Going down the Jurgen path, doubling/tripling down on Pay-To-Play is NOT working.

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  7. I like what I’ve heard from Winograd but don’t see him having munch of a chance. Solidarity payments I believe should be the first issue addressed. Many of the candidates say we need to end “pay to play” like it’s a magic, with out any real solutions.

    Clubs and academies need a means to profit off transfers and solidarity payments could be a first step.

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  8. I picked Wynalda because 1. he has a lot of playing experience, including stints abroad, so he knows how other countries do it. 2. He has coached on the lower levels and done well when he did so. 3. He really knows US soccer inside and out as well as any of the candidates. 3. While he can come across as a bit of a rabble rouser, I think he is the type of person always willing to consider change, but who wouldn’t make change just for change sake. So, I see him as someone who will make needed changes, but not throw the baby out with the bath water.

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    • Fully Agree. Same vote for me. Wynalda is not a perfect candidate but neither is anyone on this list. I believe given his background and previous rifts with MLS/SUM he is the most likely candidate to put USSF back into control of our pyramid rather than the current power structure of MLS/SUM using and dictating to USSF what it should do based on what benefits MLS/SUM economically.

      I firmly believe regardless of who is elected that the USSF president needs to be a soccer person not a business person. The business related decisions are important but must be of secondary importance to what is produced on the field of play. A separation of business and soccer decision making positions is in order I believe, but we still need a soccer person ruling the house at the top.

      The gall of Sunil and Garber to both be present at a NY soccer association dinner last week and publicly campaign for Kathy Carter just goes to show how deep the links between the MLS/SUM and USSF truly go. An independent USSF is what is most needed without influence from the league and its marketing arm.

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  9. Looking at the qualifications of each candidate, I would say Steve Gans and Kyle Martino are the best on paper. But obviously this decision won’t be made on paper. Wynalda has lots of name ID but I really don’t think he has the educational background or overall qualifications to be he head honcho. Same for Paul C.

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    • Interesting you say that Wynalda doesn’t have the education or background qualifications. If you apply that logic, doens’t Martino fall into that category too then? At least Wynalda has been in the front office/management of a team – Martino has only been in a studio where, let’s be honest, the pressure is a different kind.

      if youre going based off of ‘education and overall qualifications’ wouldn’t that mean kathy carter is a runaway?

      while definitely not scientific or comprehensive, this poll is interesting b/c it has cater, who many (including martino) believe is the hand-picked successor to sunil as being very far behind…will be interesting to see what happens…

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