How much money every Vancouver Whitecaps FC player will make in 2018

May 11 2018, 12:38 am

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
See also
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