July 11, 2011
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Former Notre Dame All-American Matt Besler has been voted a 2011 Major League Soccer (MLS) All-Star. The Sporting Kansas City defender received nearly three times as many votes via AT&T Text Voting than any other MLS player.
Besler is the first former Fighting Irish player to be named an MLS All-Star. The 2011 AT&T MLS All-Stars will face Manchester United at 8:30 p.m. (ET) on July 27th at Red Bull Arena. The match will be shown live on ESPN2, Galavision and TSN. Besler received 30 percent of all AT&T All-Star votes submitted via text.
The Overland Park, Kan. native has played in 16 matches this season with Sporting Kansas City. Besler has helped anchor the team’s defense during its current 12-game unbeaten streak in all competition. He has appeared in every match during the stretch, which is tied for the longest such streak in club history. With Besler in central defense, Sporting Kansas City has allowed one goal or less in each of the last 13 games. He also has tallied a goal and an assist this season.
Besler played at Notre Dame from 2005-08 and earned first team All-America honors during his senior campaign. He was a three-time all-BIG EAST honoree and was named the 2008 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Besler was selected by Kansas City in the first round of the 2009 MLS SuperDraft.
2011 MLS All-Star Starting Lineup
Goalkeeper:
Kasey Keller (Seattle Sounder FC)
Defenders:
Sean Franklin (LA Galaxy), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), Rafa Marquez (New York Red Bulls), Tim Ream (New York Red Bulls)
Midfielders:
David Beckham (LA Galaxy), Jack Jewsbury (Portland Timbers), Brek Shea (FC Dallas)
Forwards:
Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)
AT&T Text Voting Winner
Defender: Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City)
–ND–