Haven't gotten a raise in a few years? Maybe this will make you feel better! You might make more money than a Major League Soccer player! Sure, it's not as thrilling as, say, pulling in more than an NFL star, but it might work as a pickup line when you're at the bar. "Yeah, I played a little footie in high school. Thought about going pro, but I make about as much as the night manager at Taco Bell. And who wants all that travel?"
The Major League Soccer Players Union released every player's salary in May and put it in one convenient PDF for nosy people to dig through. As you might expect, the vast majority of soccer players don't make wild sums. Sure, there are deals like the L.A. Galaxy's Landon Donovan's $2.3 million and David Beckham's $6.5 million, but a lot of young guys in the league are scraping to get by just like the rest of us poor saps.
Rooting through the data shows that Sporting Kansas City doesn't have any jaw-dropping contracts. Kei Kamara -- he of epic miss fame -- pulls in $202,500. Julio Cesar, a journeyman who played for Real Madrid for a while, is earning $213,750 in his first MLS season. Goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen is being paid $241,666 to keep balls out of the net. Top on the SKC pay sheet is captain Davy Arnaud, 30, who is banking $258,750 this year.
That's some serious money. Half of the team, though, doesn't even reach six-figure territory, with salaries going as low as $32,604. Can you use food stamps at stadium concession stands? Kidding, kidding. But seriously, playing a game for a living is a pretty sweet gig, so I doubt players on the bottom of the heap are whining too much. You can browse the entire league salary list here to make yourself feel better about your own earnings.
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