The American League Players Association revealed that Inter Miami star Lionel Messi will receive a record salary this year of $28.3 million, exceeding the total salaries of almost all league clubs except for only two clubs.
The team includes three players on the highest-paid list, in addition to new German arrival German Berterami, who earns $3.8 million after moving from the Mexican League.
The list of high salaries included several well-known names, most notably the Paraguayan Miguel Almiron, the Atlanta United player, with a salary of $7.8 million, the Swedish Emil Forsberg, the New York Red Bulls player, with a salary of $6 million, in addition to the Englishman, Sam Surridge, the Nashville striker, with a salary of $5.9 million.
Spanish player Ricky Poch, the Los Angeles Galaxy player, will also receive $5.8 million despite his complete absence from the current season after undergoing a second cruciate ligament surgery in two years.
On the other hand, Philadelphia Union came at the bottom of the spending list with a total salary of only $11.7 million, followed by Sporting Kansas City with $12.4 million, then FC Montreal with $13.4 million.
As for Orlando City, its salaries did not exceed $13.7 million, but this number is expected to rise with the arrival of Frenchman Antoine Griezmann during the summer with a “designated player” contract.
Some clubs witnessed a clear shift in their financial policy, most notably the Vancouver Whitecaps, which jumped to the top five in spending after signing German legend Thomas Muller.
Atlanta United also continued its large spending, as its players’ salaries amounted to $27.9 million, about a quarter of which went to Miguel Almiron alone. (Russia Today)
