The Major League Soccer Players Association released its semiannual look at the basic salary information of all 871 contracted players in MLS as of September 30.
FC Dallas sits tied for 16th in overall spend with $12m committed in guaranteed compensation. Austin FC moved past the Huntsmen by $600,000 after early-season acquisitions hit the latest update. Fellow Texans, the Houston Dynamo, sit 22nd with an $11.2m salary budget.
While Dallas spends more than the leading club in the Supporters’ Shield, the New England Revolution, it can take solace in the fact that Toronto FC is the third-highest spender in Major League Soccer, topping $19m while having a worse record than any team in the Western Conference. Inter Miami, the fourth-highest spender, is only four points ahead of Dallas and also heading for an early end to the 2021 season.
Franco Jara’s $3m guaranteed compensation no longer keeps the Argentine in the top ten of highest-paid players. Atlanta’s summer signing, Luiz Araujo, knocks Jara out of the top ten. MLS MVP-to-be Carles Gil pushed Jara down to twelfth overall after signing a new contract in May.
Facundo Quignon weighed in with a $786,000 base salary and a guaranteed figure of $840,627 in his first release since joining from Lanus in June. Szabolcs Schon is another new name on the list with a $300,000 base and $341,800 guaranteed figure.
While the release doesn’t give a full picture of a player’s contract or what they actually receive. The guaranteed compensation is the base salary, plus an average of the guaranteed bonuses and agent fees over the course of the contract, including option years.
In Schon’s case, we can deduce that his three-year contract with two option years will have an additional $209,000 in guaranteed bonuses and fees based on that $41,800 excess. The figures presented to the public also do not take into account performance bonuses or salary escalators as are built into many contracts.
FC Dallas extended two contracts this season, one being the man of the moment – Ricardo Pepi. Pepi’s new five-year deal took him from a base salary of $90,000 to $200,000. With annualized bonuses, that becomes a guaranteed number of $271,333 which is still slightly lower than Brandon Servania at $271,400.
Jimmy Maurer signed a new three-year deal with club options for ’24 and ’25. The FC Dallas number one got a well-earned raise from $158,125 to $250,000 in base salary.
Homegrowns Nicky Hernandez and Collin Smith, as well as North Texas SC loanee Caiser Gomes, are the other new additions to the salary release.
MLS Players Association Fall/Winter 2021 salary list (as of Sept. 30, 2021
| Club | Last Name | First Name | Position(s) | Base Salary | Guaranteed Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FC Dallas | Acosta | Bryan | M | $650,000.00 | $700,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Bressan | Matheus | D | $536,000.00 | $582,340.00 |
| FC Dallas | Burgess | Nkosi | D | $66,724.00 | $66,724.00 |
| FC Dallas | Cerrillo | Edwin | M | $95,000.00 | $110,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Che | Justin | D | $80,000.00 | $89,209.00 |
| FC Dallas | Elmedkhar | Kalil | D | $63,547.00 | $63,547.00 |
| FC Dallas | Ferreira | Jesus | F | $550,000.00 | $550,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Gomes | Caiser Sergio | D | $81,375.00 | $81,375.00 |
| FC Dallas | Hedges | Matt | D | $850,000.00 | $850,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Hernandez | Dominick | M | $63,547.00 | $73,237.00 |
| FC Dallas | Hollingshead | Ryan | D | $346,500.00 | $346,500.00 |
| FC Dallas | Jara | Franco | F | $2,290,000.00 | $2,977,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Martinez | Jose Antonio | D | $600,000.00 | $673,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Maurer | Jimmy | GK | $250,000.00 | $267,888.00 |
| FC Dallas | Megiolaro | Phelipe | GK | $150,000.00 | $176,250.00 |
| FC Dallas | Munjoma | Eddie | D | $66,724.00 | $66,724.00 |
| FC Dallas | Nelson | John | D | $115,000.00 | $123,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Obrian | Jader | F | $360,000.00 | $444,600.00 |
| FC Dallas | Pepi | Ricardo | F | $200,000.00 | $271,333.00 |
| FC Dallas | Pomykal | Paxton | M | $600,000.00 | $600,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Quignon | Facundo | M | $786,000.00 | $840,627.00 |
| FC Dallas | Redzic | Beni | M | $63,547.00 | $71,169.00 |
| FC Dallas | Ricaurte | Andres | M | $450,000.00 | $487,178.00 |
| FC Dallas | Roberts | Thomas | M | $150,000.00 | $163,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Schon | Szabolcs | F | $300,000.00 | $341,800.00 |
| FC Dallas | Sealy | Dante | F | $100,000.00 | $113,400.00 |
| FC Dallas | Servania | Brandon | M | $230,400.00 | $271,400.00 |
| FC Dallas | Smith | Collin | D | $63,547.00 | $66,547.00 |
| FC Dallas | Twumasi | Ema | F | $200,000.00 | $246,900.00 |
| FC Dallas | Vargas | Freddy | M | $160,000.00 | $186,000.00 |
| FC Dallas | Zobeck | Kyle | GK | $85,444.00 | $85,444.00 |
*Inter Miami CF, not Miami FC, unless you’re making a joke that I don’t get
Just rushing. The only Miami FC joke is the insistence that the team name is THE Miami FC.
Nkosi Tafari, wow what a bargain. I look forward to him hopefully getting a huge bump in the near future, whether it is here or elsewhere.
Glad to see Vargas isn’t breaking the bank. A typical “try and buy flier” with a Hunt twist (high-ish salary).