The god of soccer is on a different level even in salary.
Lionel Messi (39, Inter Miami)'s salary was found to be more than twice that of No. 2 Son Heung-min (34, LAFC). U.S. media outlets, after MLS released player salaries, said, "Messi is still on a different level."
British outlet The Guardian, citing Major League Soccer Players Association (MLSPA) data on the 13th, reported that Messi's guaranteed salary for the 2026 season is $28.333333 million (about 42.3 billion won). By contrast, Son Heung-min receives $11.152852 million (about 16.6 billion won) from LAFC. Messi's salary is about 2.5 times higher than Son's.
In particular, The Guardian emphasized, "Messi is receiving more than twice as much money as Son Heung-min." It also analyzed that Messi's individual salary exceeds the total salary budgets of most MLS clubs.
U.S. soccer specialist media reacted similarly. World Soccer Talk said, "Son Heung-min also receives an enormous amount, but it falls far short of Messi's income," and described, "Son's salary is about one-third of Messi's."
Currently, only Messi and Son Heung-min earn more than $10 million (about 1.49 billion won) in MLS. Third place is Rodrigo De Paul, who earns about $9.68 million (about 1.44 billion won).
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