Major League Soccer 2026 Highest-Paid Players
The MLSPA says Messi’s guaranteed pay is nearly three times Son Heung-min’s and tops a list of MLS’s highest earners.
- On Tuesday, the MLS Players Association released 2026 salary data, confirming Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi as the league's highest-paid player with $28.3 million in guaranteed compensation.
- Messi's top-earner status follows his MLS Cup title victory last year, when he became the first player to win back-to-back league MVP awards.
- His $28.3 million compensation is nearly three times that of LAFC forward Son Heung-min, the league's second-highest earner at $11.2 million this year.
- Inter Miami's $54.6m payroll is more than $20m higher than LAFC's $32.7m, the league's second-highest, creating significant competitive spending disparity.
- Beyond his base contract, the 38-year-old Argentina captain maintains separate deals with Fanatics and Apple while recording 59 goals in 64 regular-season games.
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The MLS Players Association has released its salary figures for 2026. Lionel Messi has topped the list for the third year in a row, with his salary increasing significantly compared to last season. Former Tottenham midfielder Heung-min Son is in second place, earning more than half the salary of the Argentine. The third highest amount in the league is received by another Argentine and Messi's teammate, Rodrigo De Paul.
Major League Soccer (MLS) has announced the names of the 10 highest-paid players in the league for 2026 and the list does not contain many surprises. Three-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi is the highest-paid player in MLS for 2026, with a salary of $28.3 million. After the Argentine star comes Son Heung-Min with a salary of $11.2 million, while the podium is completed by Rodrigo De Paul with a salary of $9.7 million. Hirving Lozano ranks am…
The MLS player union has published its latest salary report. Thomas Müller collects many millions less than Lionel Messi.
Son Heung-min's Guaranteed Salary for 2026 Season: 16.6 Billion Won... 2nd in MLS. It has been revealed that the guaranteed salary for this season of Son Heung-min, who plays for Los Angeles FC (LAFC) in the Major League Soccer (MLS), is approximately 16.6 billion won. According to salary data for the 2026 season released by the MLS Players Association on the 13th, Son Heung-min this year.
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