Seattle Sounders striker Obafemi Martins could easily claim the ‘Million Dollar Man’ tag for the US Open Cup this year, but it would not be a positive nickname. In a breakdown of MLS player salaries for the Third Round based on figures released earlier this year by the MLS Players Union, the Sounders were easily the highest paid MLS club based on who played, and Martins salary was twice that of any other player.
TheCup.us tabulated the guaranteed salaries, per the MLSPU list, for all the MLS clubs and discovered the Sounders were at the top of the list at a total salary of $192,856 who took the field in Tampa Bay against the Rowdies in the stunning 1-0 upset loss. In comparison, most clubs came in at a range from $138,000 to $101,000, but Seattle topped a list of four that were outliers at the top with FC Dallas ($176,142), DC United ($157,465) and the Chicago Fire ($153,961) also spending allocating over 150k in salary on their tournament openers. Meanwhile, Chivas USA ($86,948), Sporting KC ($76,952) and the Los Angeles Galaxy ($69,084) came in at the bottom of the list.
That’s correct, the lowest salaried team and the highest, were each knocked out as you will recall the Carolina RailHawks blanked the Galaxy, who sent a squad almost entirely comprised of reserves, 2-0.
Seattle was the most interesting case, however, because of Martins and what transpired in the match versus Tampa Bay. His entry at the 81st minute may prove to be the most costly nine minutes in Sounders history. First of all, the average salary of the players for that game without Martins would have been the lowest among all MLS teams for the round at $65,177, but his guaranteed deal of $1,725,000 was not only the sole contract over a million dollars, but it dwarfed FC Dallas striker David Ferreira’s salary for 2013 of $730,000.
Then there is what happened on the field. One could argue that perhaps the Sounders would not have had a chance at pulling even from the penalty spot if it were not for Martins’ header that led to the handball in front of the goalline, but he was also the man who shot the spot kick poorly moments later, allowing Rowdies keeper Diego Restrepo to make the dramatic save for the win.
For those wishing to compare the values of the players utilized in comparison to the US Open Cup, similar figures have been tabulated by INWsoccernews for the MLS Reserve League. The MLS Reserve League figures, which are much lower for each team, can be found here [+]
TheCup.us will continue to track the salaries as the tournament progresses and provide further updates.
Club — Avg Guaranteed Salaries for Third Round Appearances — Result
Seattle — 192,856 — Lost 1-0 at Tampa Bay (NASL)
FC Dallas — 176,142 — Won 2-0 at Fort Lauderdale (NASL)
DC United — 157,465 — Tied 0-0 (won PK 4-2) at Richmond (USL Pro)
Chicago — 153,961 — Won 2-0 at Charlotte (USL Pro)
San Jose — 137,984 — Lost 1-0 at Charleston (USL Pro)
New England — 136,991 — Won 5-1 at Rochester (USL Pro)
Philadelphia — 135,202 — Won 2-1 vs Ocean City (USL PDL)
New York — 132,692 — Won 2-0 vs Reading (USL PDL)
Columbus — 128,714 — Won 2-1 vs Dayton (USL Pro)
Real Salt Lake — 119,372 — Won 3-2 OT vs Atlanta (NASL)
Portland — 108,102 — Won 5-1 vs Wilmington (USL Pro)
Colorado — 107,902 — Lost 3-1 at Orlando (USL Pro)
Houston — 101,015 — Won 2-0 vs Tucson (USL PDL)
Chivas USA — 86,948 — Won 2-1 at LA Blues (USL Pro)
Sporting KC — 76,952 — Won 2-0 vs Des Moines (USL PDL)
LA Galaxy — 69,084 — Lost 2-0 at Carolina (NASL)
Third Round Highest Paid Players ($300,000+)
Obafemi Martins (SEA) – 1,725,000
David Ferreira (DAL) – 730,000
Dwayne De Rosario (DC) – 645,333
Federico Higuain (CLB) – 604,000
Chris Wondolowski (SJ) – 600,000
Sherjill McDonald (CHI) – 527,125
Kalifa Cisse (NE) – 445,000
Chris Pontius (DC) – 361,000
Bakary Soumare (CHI) – 350,000
Heath Pearce (NY) – 340,736
Blas Perez (DAL) – 324,250
Benny Feilhaber (KC) – 312,188
Kyle Beckerman (RSL) – 311,250
Kei Kamara (KC) – 302,500
Javier Morales (RSL) – 300,000
Note: Five players who were signed since the release of the MLSPU list played in the Third Round and were given a ‘filler’ value of $50,000 salaries by TheCup.us for their participation. These figures will be replaced upon further updates by the MLSPU. Those players are: Mechak Jerome (KC), Andrew McKelvey (Columbus), German Mera (Colorado), Aaron Ponce (Chivas USA) and Robbie Rogers (LA Galaxy).
#USOC100