LIONEL MESSI is unsurprisingly earning the big bucks at Inter Miami.
And the World Cup winner isn’t just the highest earning player currently in the MLS, but is also the biggest earner in the history of the league.
New figures released by the MLS Players Association reveal that the global superstar is earning a whopping $20.4m (£16.8m) per season with his new club.
The Argentine is said to be earning base salary of $12m (£9.8m) with a further $8.4m (£6.9m) coming in the form of guaranteed bonuses and signing on fees.
And those figures are just a drop in the ocean of what he is reported to be earning when his sponsorship deals with Apple, Adidas and Fanatics are taken into account.
Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas previously revealed that all-in-all Messi’s contract would see him earn between “$50m (£41.1m) to $60m (£49.4m) per year”.
READ MORE ON MESSI
But even without his added sponsorships, Messi dwarves his competitors in the battle for the biggest pay cheque.
Lorenzo Insigne is the league’s second highest earner, collecting $15.4m (£12.7m) from Toronto FC each season.
While former Liverpool man Xherdan Shaqiri earns the third most in the MLS with his $8.1m (£6.7m) per season contract.
In fact Messi is earning so much that he personally pockets more money from Inter Miami than the entire wage bill of 25 of the teams in the MLS.
Most read in Football
FREE BETS – BEST BETTING OFFERS AND BONUSES NEW CUSTOMERS
And his high profile teammates are earning pennies in comparison to the former Barcelona and PSG star.
Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, who both followed Messi to Florida, are miles away from the salaries you would expect them to be collecting.
Busquets takes home $1.8m (£1.5m) every season while Alba earns slightly less with his yearly salary coming out to $1.25m (£1m).
But fans of the Herons may feel his compensation is justified with Messi already netting 11 times and providing five assists in just 13 appearances for the club.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
