The English Premier League will be inducting its first two Hall of Fame names this month with a shortlist of nominees to be announced for future inclusion, voted for by fans.
It will be separate to the English Football Hall of Fame, which has existed since 2002 at the National Football Museum.
The Premier League version will recognise players of "exceptional skill and talent" from home and worldwide who have played in the game’s top tier since it began in 1992 – with candidates who have retired and whose Premier League career comes into consideration.
Each inductee will receive a personalised medallion, engraved with the year of their induction.
Premier League Chief Executive, Richard Masters, said: "The Premier League Hall of Fame is reserved for the very best in the game and will be an occasion for our fans around the world to look back over the years and help us celebrate some truly exceptional playing careers."
The likes of legends such as former Manchester United star, Ryan Giggs, Arsenal’s Thierry Henry and former Southampton, Blackburn and Newcastle United’s record-breaking striker, Alan Shearer were the first suggested names on the list of world-class players to have graced the Premier League.
Now, the very best of the best will receive a new highly exclusive honour after the Premier League’s announcement of its first Hall of Fame.
Of course, though, the millions of fans of clubs who have graced the Premier League since its inception, in 1992, have their own individual to put forward.
"Membership of the Premier League Hall of Fame will be the highest individual honor awarded to players by the League," it said in a statement.
As a footnote; on what would have been his 59th birthday - former Norwich City, Nottingham Forest and England striker, Justin Fashanu, was inducted into the National Football Museum's Hall of Fame.
