Debuting in 1996 with just 10 teams, MLS is a relatively young professional league. Having grown to 23 teams since then, it has become increasingly relevant in the consciousness of the North American sports fan.
And the money has grown with it.
MLS welcomed two new franchises to the league last season, and added another expansion team this year. Teams averaged 22,106 fans per game last season, setting a new league record.
With increased revenue comes increased costs, as teams try to assemble the best rosters possible to compete for the MLS Cup.
On Thursday, the MLSPA released the salaries of every player in the league. A pair of Toronto FC stars lead the way, as Sebastian Giovinco will make more than $7 million this season, while teammate Michael Bradley will take home $6.5 million.
The Vancouver Whitecaps aren’t spending in that stratosphere though, instead focusing their efforts on developing their own talent. Alphonso Davies is the best example of that, as the 17-year-old will take home just $72,500 this season.
The Whitecaps’ payroll ranks 16th in MLS this season, down from ninth last year.
Team | Base salary | Guaranteed compensation |
1. Toronto FC | $23,480,305 | $26,167,499 |
2. Los Angeles Galaxy | $14,799,180 | $17,502,008 |
3. New York City FC | $13,249,558 | $14,147,633 |
4. Chicago Fire | $13,165,346 | $13,824,204 |
5. Los Angeles FC | $11,254,869 | $13,432,053 |
6. Portland Timbers | $11,209,418 | $12,516,335 |
7. Montreal Impact | $7,230,911 | $11,888,541 |
8. Seattle Sounders | $9,767,458 | $11,376,125 |
9. Atlanta United | $10,369,120 | $11,306,330 |
10. Colorado Rapids | $9,981,477 | $11,001,331 |
11. FC Dallas | $8,239,754 | $9,333,819 |
12. Sporting Kansas City | $8,825,490 | $9,176,166 |
13. Orlando City | $8,230,668 | $8,981,658 |
14. Real Salt Lake | $8,228,528 | $8,975,666 |
15. Philadelphia Union | $8,492,604 | $8,915,988 |
16. Vancouver Whitecaps | $7,531,016 | $8,233,012 |
17. Minnesota United | $7,561,894 | $8,152,683 |
18. San Jose Earthquakes | $7,116,235 | $7,787,253 |
19. New York Red Bulls | $7,079,490 | $7,689,314 |
20. Columbus Crew | $6,632,083 | $6,971,083 |
21. New England Revolution | $6,139,674 | $6,818,556 |
22. D.C. United | $6,325,797 | $6,744,420 |
23. Houston Dynamo | $5,267,338 | $5,673,472 |
Vancouver’s highest-paid player is their new striker, Kei Kamara. Kamara is one of 46 millionaires in MLS, making $1 million on the dot. Their lowest-paid players will take home just $54,500.
The salaries of the players in between are interesting to note, because they don’t always reflect a player’s true value to the team.
Brek Shea’s salary is the second highest on the Whitecaps, for instance, despite the fact that he usually comes off the bench during matches. Their captain, Kendall Waston, ranks fifth. Goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic plays nearly every match, yet he makes only marginally more money than Russell Teibert, who often doesn’t see the pitch at all.
Here’s how much every Whitecaps player will make in 2018, sorted by total compensation:
Name | Position | Base Salary | Total Compensation |
Kei Kamara | Forward | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
Brek Shea | Defender/Midfielder | $700,000 | $745,000 |
Aly Ghazal | Midfielder | $575,000 | $700,567 |
Efrain Juarez | Defender/Midfielder | $525,000 | $619,833 |
Kendall Waston | Defender | $575,000 | $604,167 |
Yordy Reyna | Forward/Midfielder | $440,000 | $533,700 |
Felipe Martins | Midfielder | $425,000 | $425,000 |
Cristian Techera | Midfielder | $387,000 | $412,000 |
Bernie Ibini | Forward | $265,008 | $304,008 |
Anthony Blondell | Forward | $250,000 | $295,203 |
Jordon Mutch | Midfielder | $156,000 | $284,167 |
Jose Aja | Defender | $240,000 | $240,000 |
Aaron Maund | Defender | $180,000 | $189,438 |
Stefan Marinovic | Goalkeeper | $150,000 | $162,563 |
Russell Teibert | Midfielder | $140,000 | $160,000 |
Marcel de Jong | Defender/Midfielder | $160,000 | $160,000 |
Erik Hurtado | Forward/Midfielder | $150,000 | $156,250 |
Doneil Henry | Defender | $140,004 | $154,238 |
Sean Franklin | Defender | $150,000 | $150,000 |
Brian Rowe | Goalkeeper | $135,000 | $135,000 |
Nicolas Mezquida | Forward/Midfielder | $130,000 | $130,000 |
Alphonso Davies | Midfielder | $72,500 | $72,500 |
Jakob Nerwinski | Defender | $67,500 | $71,625 |
Brett Levis | Defender | $68,250 | $70,750 |
Spencer Richey | Goalkeeper | $68,254 | $68,254 |
Simon Colyn | Midfielder | $54,500 | $60,750 |
David Norman | Midfielder | $54,500 | $55,500 |
Sean Melvin | Goalkeeper | $54,500 | $54,500 |
Justin Fiddes | Defender | $54,500 | $54,500 |
Deybi Flores | Midfielder | $54,500 | $54,500 |
Marcos Bustos | Midfielder | $54,500 | $54,500 |
Myer Bevan | Forward | $54,500 | $54,500 |
Note: “Total compensation” refers to the player’s base salary plus all signing and guaranteed bonuses annualized over the term of the player’s contract, including option years.
Below is the list of 46 players in MLS making at least $1 million in total compensation:
Name | Team | Position | Base Salary | Total Compensation |
Sebastian Giovinco | Toronto FC | F | $5,600,000 | $7,115,556 |
Michael Bradley | Toronto FC | M | $6,000,000 | $6,500,000 |
Carlos Vela | LAFC | F | $4,500,000 | $6,292,500 |
Bastian Schweinsteiger | Chicago Fire | M | $6,100,000 | $6,100,000 |
Giovani dos Santos | LA Galaxy | F | $4,250,000 | $6,000,000 |
David Villa | New York City FC | F | $5,610,000 | $5,610,000 |
Jozy Altidore | Toronto FC | F | $5,000,000 | $5,000,000 |
Ignacio Piatti | Montreal Impact | M | $500,000 | $4,713,333 |
Tim Howard | Colorado Rapids | GK | $2,000,000 | $2,475,000 |
Diego Valeri | Portland Timbers | M | $2,320,000 | $2,380,000 |
Nicolas Lodeiro | Seattle Sounders FC | M | $1,800,000 | $2,302,500 |
Miguel Almiron | Atlanta United | M | $1,912,500 | $2,297,000 |
Yura Movsisyan | Major League Soccer L.L.C | F | $1,850,000 | $2,073,750 |
Maxi Moralez | New York City FC | M | $2,000,000 | $2,000,000 |
Jonathan dos Santos | LA Galaxy | M | $2,000,000 | $2,000,000 |
Fanendo Adi | Portland Timbers | F | $1,275,000 | $1,933,333 |
Nemanja Nikolic | Chicago Fire | F | $1,700,000 | $1,906,333 |
Romain Alessandrini | LA Galaxy | M | $1,539,996 | $1,869,996 |
Borek Dockal | Philadelphia Union | M | $1,714,286 | $1,714,286 |
Shkelzen Gashi | Colorado Rapids | F | $1,575,000 | $1,668,750 |
Clint Dempsey | Seattle Sounders FC | F | $1,100,000 | $1,650,000 |
Darwin Quintero | Minnesota United | F | $1,650,000 | $1,650,000 |
Felipe Gutierrez | Sporting Kansas City | M | $1,600,000 | $1,650,000 |
Bradley Wright-Phillips | New York Red Bulls | F | $1,500,000 | $1,635,000 |
Victor Vazquez | Toronto FC | M | $1,365,000 | $1,500,000 |
Zlatan Ibrahimovic | LA Galaxy | F | $1,500,000 | $1,500,000 |
Valeri “Vako” Qazaishvili | San Jose Earthquakes | M | $1,325,004 | $1,454,042 |
Ezequiel Barco | Atlanta United | M | $1,425,000 | $1,425,000 |
Josef Martinez | Atlanta United | F | $1,270,008 | $1,387,318 |
Dom Dwyer | Orlando City SC | F | $1,200,000 | $1,383,333 |
Sebastian Blanco | Portland Timbers | M | $1,300,008 | $1,375,008 |
Ager Aketxe Barrutia | Toronto FC | M | $1,190,000 | $1,295,000 |
Aleksandar Katai | Chicago Fire | M | $1,140,000 | $1,276,333 |
Alejandro Bedoya | Philadelphia Union | M | $1,200,000 | $1,266,250 |
David Accam | Philadelphia Union | F-M | $1,250,000 | $1,250,000 |
Alfredo Ortuno | Real Salt Lake | F | $990,000 | $1,162,500 |
Osvaldo Alonso | Seattle Sounders FC | M | $1,100,000 | $1,141,667 |
Sacha Kljestan | Orlando City SC | M | $1,025,000 | $1,100,000 |
Federico Higuain | Columbus Crew | M | $1,100,000 | $1,100,000 |
Victor Rodriguez | Seattle Sounders FC | M | $1,000,000 | $1,087,500 |
Diego Rossi | LAFC | F | $1,000,000 | $1,052,000 |
Lucas Melano | Portland Timbers | F | $830,000 | $1,050,000 |
Damir Kreilach | Real Salt Lake | M | $900,000 | $1,013,333 |
Krisztian Nemeth | New England Revolution | F | $900,000 | $1,007,667 |
Jorgen Skjelvik | LA Galaxy | D | $900,000 | $1,000,000 |
Kei Kamara | Vancouver Whitecaps | F | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |