Galaxy, LAFC in top half of MLS payrolls; 'Chicharito' second-highest paid player

The Galaxy have the second-highest team payroll and the second-highest-paid player in MLS, according to salary figures released Tuesday by the players’ union.

The team’s wage bill of $20.53 million is about $470,000 less than Atlanta United’s total of $20.99 million. But it’s more than $200,000 greater than last season’s salary figure, which led MLS.

Individually, Galaxy captain Javier “Chicharito” Hernández will make $6 million this season, trailing only the Chicago Fire’s Xherdan Shaqiri, who will be paid a league-record $8.153 million in guaranteed compensation.

LAFC’s Carlos Vela, who was the best-paid player in MLS last season, saw his guaranteed compensation trimmed by $2.25 million to $4.05 million. That’s still seventh best in the league. LAFC’s team payroll of $14.56 million, $1.2 million less than last year, ranks 11th in the league.

The Galaxy are paying the 29 players on their roster an average of $707,863 while the 28 men on LAFC’s roster are earning an average of $520,847.

The union says the average base salary for senior roster nondesignated players this season rose 10.3%, to $438,728, continuing a trend of double-digit growth over thelast five seasons. Fifty players will make at least $1.5 million this season.

With the Galaxy spending big on Hernández and Brazilian Douglas Costa — whose guaranteed salary of $3 million is 16th highest in MLS — the team is spending more on forwards — $12.45 million — than any other club. But they have gotten little return from that investment with 12 goals in 11 games, the Galaxy have outscored just six of the league’s 28 teams.

Besides Hernández and Costa, the Galaxy have one other millionaire in designated player Kévin Cabral, who will make $1.65 million. Forward Preston Judd is the team’s lowest-paid player at $65,500 while midfielder Sacha Kljestan took a pay cut of more than $163,000, to $84,000.

For LAFC, the best-paid player after Vela is U.S. national team midfielder Kellyn Acosta, whose guaranteed compensation is $1.215 million. The team has two other millionaires in midfielder Ilie Sánchez ($1.15 million) and forward Brian Rodríguez ($1.45 million). The lowest-paid player is forward Cal Jennings with a salary of $84,000.

The team getting the most for its money is Real Salt Lake, which is fifth in the Western Conference standings with a payroll of $10.477 million. That breaks down to $551,466 a point. Chicago, which is last in the Eastern Conference with 10 points, is spending more than three times as much per point with a payroll topping $17.65 million.

MLS team payrolls

1. Atlanta, $20.999 million

2. Galaxy, $20.528 million

3. Miami, $18.882 million

4. New England, $18.141 million

5. Chicago, $17.645 million

6. Seattle, $16.983 million

7. New York City, $15.543

8. Toronto, $15.213 million

9. Dallas, $15.031 million

10. Columbus. $14.978 million

11. LAFC, $14.563 million

12. Cincinnati, $13.789 million

13. Austin, $13.754 million

14. Kansas City, $13.631 million

15. Minnesota, $13.240 million

16. Montreal, $12.920 million

17. DC United, $12.483 million

18. Vancouver, $11.946 million

19. Philadelphia, $11.808 million

20. New York Red Bulls, $11.726 million

21. Nashville, $11.710 million

22. Houston, $11.548 million

23. San Jose, $11.541 million

24. Orlando, $11.509 million

25. Colorado, $11.390 million

26. Portland, $11.311 million

27. Charlotte, $10.708 million

28. Salt Lake, $10.477 million

Highest-paid players

(guaranteed compensation)

1. Xherdan Shaqiri, Chicago, M, $8.153 million

2. Javier “Chicharito” Hernández, F, Galaxy, $6 million

3. Gonzalo Higuaín, Miami, F, $5.793 million

4. Alejandro Pozuelo, Toronto, M, $4.693 million

5. Jozy Altidore, New England, F, $4.264 million

6. Josef Martínez, Atlanta, F, $4.141 million

7. Carlos Vela, LAFC, F, $4.050 million

8. Luis Araujo, Atlanta, F, $3.941 million

9. Lucas Zelarayan, Columbus, M, $3.7 million

10. Gil Carles, New England, M, $3.545 million

11. Rodolfo Pizarro, Miami, M, $3.350 million

12. Nicolás Lodeiro, Seattle, M, $3.256 million

13. Franco Jara, Dallas, F, $3.227 million

14. Raúl Ruidíaz, Seattle, F, $3.201 million

15. Victor Wanyama, Montreal, M, $3.091 million

16. Douglas Costa, Galaxy, F/M, $3 million

17. Adrien Hunou, Minnesota, F, $2.687 million

18. Gustavo Bou, New England, M, $2.675 million

19. Gastón Giménez, Chicago, M, $2.360 million

20. Carlos Salcedo, Toronto, D, $2.351 million

21. Thiago Almada, Atlanta, M, $2.332 million

22. Sebastian Driussi, Austin, F, $2.317 million

23. Ryan Gauld, Vancouver, M, $2.265 million

24. Karol Swiderski, Charlotte, F, $2.258 million

25. Luciano Acosta, Cincinnati, M, $2.222 million

Galaxy salaries

(guaranteed compensation)

Daniel Aguirre, F, $66,724

Efraín Álvarez, M, $712,167

Julián Araujo, D, $678,750

Jonathan Bond, G, $526,875

Kévin Cabral, F, $1.65 million

Douglas Costa, M/F, $3 million

Séga Coulibaly, D, $457,000

Mark Delgado, M, $726,250

Nick DePuy, D, $231,000

Cameron Dunbar, M, $136,750

Raheem Edwards, D, $307,500

Adam Saldaña, M, $95,447

Marcus Ferkranus, D, $113,625

Samuel Grandsir, F/M, $988,427

Carlos Harvey, M, $84,000

Javier “Chicharito” Hernández, F, $6 million

Dejan Joveljic, F, $612,500

Preston Judd, F, $65,500

Jonathan Klinsmann, G, $200,000

Sacha Kljestan, M, $84,000

Kelvin Leerdam, D, $335,000

Jalen Neal, D, $113,625

Jonathan Pérez, M, $171,750

Rayan Raveloson, M, $855,025

Richard Sánchez, G, $84,000

Victor Vázquez, M, $440,000

Jorge Villafaña, D, $486,667

Derrick Williams, D, $821,458

Eriq Zavaleta, $84,000

LAFC salaries

(guaranteed compensation)

Kellyn Acosta, M, $1.215 million

Cristian Arango, F, $683,000

Latif Blessing, M, $416,667

José Cifuentes, M, $411,750

Maxime Crépeau, G, $302,500

Erik Dueñas, D, $102,000

Franco Escobar, D, $550,008

Mamadou Fall, D, $118,750

Julian Gaines, F, $87,444

Francisco Ginella, M, $572,250

Doneil Henry, D, $403,000

Ryan Hollingshead, $393,750

Sebastian Ibeagha, D, $252,125

Cal Jennings, F, $84,000

Antonio Leone, D, $102,000

John McCarthy, G, $110,000

Jesús Murillo, D, $509,500

Danny Musovski, F, $93,988

Kwadwo, Opoku, F, $133,095

Diego Palacios, D, $510,000

Brian Rodríguez, F, $1.144 million

Tomás Romero, G, $95,000

Ilie Sánchez, $1.15 million

Eddie Segura, $224,000

Ismael Tajouri-Shradi, F, $647,860

Christian Torres, $101,230

Mohamed Traore, D, $100,000

Carlos Vela, F, $4.05 million

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.