Son Heung-min to Earn 16.6 Billion Won This Season... "Salary King" Messi Gets 42.3 Billion Won

Son Heung-min Ranks Second in MLS Salary, Just Behind Messi

Son Heung-min, currently playing for Los Angeles FC (LAFC) in Major League Soccer (MLS), is reportedly earning a guaranteed annual salary of approximately 16.64 billion won this season. However, this amount is less than half of the salary received by "God of Football" Lionel Messi of Inter Miami.

According to the 2026 season salary data released by the MLS Players Association on May 13 (Korean time), Son Heung-min will receive $11,152,852 (approximately 16.64 billion won) this year.

This amount, as of April 16 this year, reflects the guaranteed annual salary, which is calculated by adding the base salary, signing bonus, and guaranteed bonuses for the year, then averaging this sum over the duration of the contract. It includes marketing bonuses and agent fees, but does not include bonuses whose payout is not guaranteed, such as performance incentives. Furthermore, income from individual contracts between the player and the club or sponsors is excluded, meaning Son's actual total earnings could be higher than the disclosed salary.

After leaving Tottenham Hotspur (England) and joining LAFC in August last year for a record MLS transfer fee of up to $26.5 million (approximately 39.538 billion won), Son Heung-min is now in his second season in the MLS. His salary ranks second highest in the league.

Messi tops the salary rankings. Having extended his contract with Inter Miami until 2028 last October, Messi's annual salary this year is $28,333,333 (approximately 42.273 billion won), which is about 2.5 times higher than Son's. The third highest paid player is Messi's teammate, Rodrigo De Paul, with a guaranteed annual salary of $9,688,320 (14.455 billion won).

Meanwhile, Son Heung-min has also contributed to an increase in LAFC's brand value, achieving the top spot in global jersey sales since joining the club.

In October last year, the BBC in the UK also evaluated that "Son Heung-min's arrival at LAFC is showing signs of creating an impact comparable to Messi's signing." It continued, "The video of Son's introductory press conference recorded 200,000 views on YouTube (compared to Messi's 337,000), and at the time of his transfer announcement, LAFC's social media views reached approximately 34 billion, a 594% increase compared to before."