Article by Aurelian Botezatu – Published on Sunday, 08 March 2026, 14:27 / Updated on Sunday, 08 March 2026 14:28
His co-owner Inter MiamiJorge Mas, admitted paying him Lionel Messi (38 years) between $70 and $80 million per year.
Mas claims he is delighted to pay Messi such a sum because the Argentina international deserves all the money. “The reason I need sponsors and for them to be world-class is because players are expensive.
I pay Messi, he deserves every penny, but it's 70-80 million dollars a year (60-69 million euros). Everywhere,” the businessman told The Athletic daily.
Lionel Messi has a salary of 17.6 million euros per year
According to the MLS Players Association, Messi earns a base salary of $12 million per season, but including guaranteed compensation, it comes to $20.45 million (17.6 million euros).
On the other hand, his contract also includes a future stake in Inter Miami, which substantially increases the total value of the deal. He extended his contract with the Americans for 3 years in October 2025, two months before he won the MLS Cup with the team.
Despite his XXL salary in Miami, Messi cannot compare to Cristiano Ronaldo, however. The Al Nassr striker is by far the highest paid player in the world at the moment.
Cristiano Ronaldo earns triple the earnings of Lionel Messi
CR7 signed a new two-year contract with the Saudis in June last year, extending his stay in Riyadh until 2027. When the deal was made official, it was reported in the Arab press that it was worth almost 205 million euros, which is about three times Messi's annual earnings.
The contract is widely regarded as the most lucrative in sporting history, with Ronaldo reportedly earning €563,000 a day, his basic salary!
Top 10 Highest Paid Players in MLS
- Lionel Messi (Inter Miami) – 20.45 million dollars
- Heung-min Son (Los Angeles FC) – 11.15 million dollars
- Sergio Busquets (Inter Miami) – 8.78 million dollars
- Miguel Almiron (Atlanta United) – 7.87 million dollars
- Hirving Lozano (San Diego) – 7.63 million dollars
- Emil Forsberg (New York Red Bull) – 6.04 million dollars
- Jordi Alba (Inter Miami) – 6 million dollars
- Riqui Puig (LA Galaxy) – 5.78 million dollars
- Jonathan Bamba (Chicago Fire) – 5.58 million dollars
- Hany Mukhtar (Nashville) – 5.31 million dollars
