Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan and Tim Howard have been selected by 213 sports journalists from across the nation as the three finalists for the 2008 Honda Player of the Year Award, widely recognized as the most prestigious award a U.S. National Team player can receive.

The winner will be announced during the special award luncheon celebrating the 18th Honda Player of the Year Award on Tuesday, November 11 at The Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. The award luncheon is open to all media and will begin at 11:30am. The winner of the Honda Player of the Year Award will receive a new Honda automobile.

Clint Dempsey, winner of the 2006 Honda Player of the Year Award, has consistently been one of the best players on the U.S. National Team since his debut in 2004.  Playing in his first FIFA World Cup in Germany 2006, Dempsey was the only player to score for the U.S. at the tournament.  Since then, the 25-year old has continued to lead the team, scoring four goals during this year's World Cup Qualification matches,* including the lone goal in the historic U.S. vs. Cuba game played in Havana.  The midfielder began his professional club career with the New England Revolution in 2004 then transferred to Fulham of the English Premier League in 2006 where he's become a regular member of the starting team, making 36 appearances and scoring six goals in the last season.

Landon Donovan, the only four-time winner of the Honda Player of the Year Award, reached another milestone with this year's nomination by tying Kasey Keller as the only other player to be a finalist six times.  Earlier this year, Donovan scored a record-breaking 35th goal during the game against Sweden, making him the all-time goalscorer for the U.S. National Team.  Since then, the 26-year old scored at the World Cup Qualifying match against the Barbados, bringing his career total to 36 goals during his 104 games with the team.* Donovan began his professional career with the San Jose Earthquakes then played for Bayer Leverkusen in Germany before joining his current team, the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Tim Howard, a finalist for the Honda Player of the Year award for the second year in a row, has become the U.S. National Team's first choice goalkeeper, appearing in eight of the eleven matches played so far this year.* With 34 caps, Howard has an impressive 15 career shutouts, including five in this year's World Cup qualifying appearances.* The 29-year old began his professional career with the MetroStars before transferring to Manchester United in 2003.  In 2007, Howard moved to his current club, Everton of the English Premier league, where he's continued to excel. Though his 2007-2008 season with the team was cut short by a finger injury, Howard still finished it only one short of the league's shutout record of 15.

The previous winners of the Honda Player of the Year Award are: Landon Donovan (2007, 2004, 2003 and 2002), Clint Dempsey (2006), Kasey Keller (2005, 1999), Earnie Stewart (2001), Claudio Reyna (2000), Cobi Jones (1998), Eddie Pope (1997), Eric Wynalda (1996, 1992), Alexi Lalas (1995), Marcelo Balboa (1994), Thomas Dooley (1993) and Hugo Perez (1991).  In 2000, Eric Wynalda was named the Honda Player of the Decade.

For more than a decade, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. has supported soccer programs and played a part in the growth of this exciting sport in America.  Honda's current support includes 18 years as a sponsor of the Honda Player of the Year Award and 11 years as a sponsor of the Honda Symposium.

Fútbol de Primera is the home of the most exclusive soccer radio rights in the country, including the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups and all FIFA events, the World Cup CONCACAF Qualifying matches, the Mexican National Team, South America's Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana and the Mexican League Game of the Week, among others. FDP will also broadcasts exclusive coverage of the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup next summer.  In addition, our two-hour daily radio show on soccer, hosted by Andres Cantor, is heard on over 150 stations throughout the United States, Mexico and Central America.  In partnership with Sirius XM Satellite Radio for the last three years, Fútbol de Primera also produces XM Deportivo, the first 24-hour Spanish-language sports channel on satellite radio. In 2006, XM Deportivo (Ch. 147) aired FDP's extensive coverage of the FIFA World Cup in Germany and currently, the channel brings all of FDP's programming to Hispanics across the country on a daily basis.