LAFC's Son second only to Miami's Messi on MLS salary list - ESPN

LAFC's Son Heung-Min joined Inter Miami's Lionel Messi as the only two MLS players to make over $10 million in annual salary. Son, a summer acquisition by LAFC has a guaranteed compensation of $11.2 million while Messi remains the league's highest paid player at $20.4 million.

The information is according to the MLS Players Association, which released its list of MLS player salary data on Wednesday.

Messi's number includes just his playing salary, with the Argentine also set to benefit from other revenue streams such as his endorsement deal with Adidas and a revenue sharing agreement with league broadcast partner Apple.

According to Sportico, Messi stands to earn up to $150 million over the life of the two-and-a-half year contract that was due to expire at the end of this year. Messi, the newly crowned Golden Boot winner in MLS with 29 goals in 28 games, recently signed a contract extension with Inter Miami that will see him remain in South Florida through the end of the 2028 season.

Son's contract with LAFC runs through 2027, with options that could extend it to 2029.

The top five earners were rounded out by Messi's club teammate, Sergio Busquets, who makes $8.8 million, followed by Atlanta United's Miguel Almirón at $6.1 million and San Diego's Hirving Lozano at $6 million.

All data is as of Oct. 1, 2025. The salary data was annualized for players who arrived during the summer transfer window.

Miami continues to lap the field in terms of total team spending. Thanks to the midseason arrival of Rodrigo DePaul, Miami increased its spending to a record $48.97 million, though it missed out on a second consecutive Supporters' Shield triumph, with the low-spending Philadelphia Union winning that trophy.

Miami's outlay is more