If you are into the dollars and cents of Austin FC, feast your eyes on the 2023 player salaries provided by Major League Soccer Players Association (MLSPA).
The payroll data includes Austin FC base salary and guaranteed compensation, but not performance bonuses or club transfer fees, for MLS players under contract with ATXFC as of September 15, 2023.
The first thing we noticed: Austin FC player salaries vary widely — from $6 million (Sebastian Driussi) to $67,360 (Damian Las). And in case you’re wondering, this season beloved goalkeeper Brad Stuver got a raise for his stellar performance in 2022 between the posts — his guaranteed compensation increased from $185,000 to $430,813 in 2023.
Maybe the best contract deal for Austin FC is playmaker Dani Pereira on a total wage bill of $118,414.
Payroll Turnover in 2022/23 Offseason
In the offseason, there was plenty of roster turnover.
The following players were added to the payroll for 2023.
- Gyasi Zardes — $800,000
- Aleksandar Radovanovic — $692,500
- Leo Väisänen — $654,500
- Adam Lundqvist — $397,000
- Amro Tarek — $249,996
- Will Bruin — $200,000
- Matt Bersano — $132,500
- Alfonso Ocampo-Chávez — $83,360
- Sofiana Djeffal — $75,325
- CJ Fodrey — $69,360
TOTAL INCOMING WAGES: $3,354,541
In contrast, Austin FC declined the contract, released, or loaned these players for 2023.
- Ruben Gabrielsen — $950,000
- Danny Hoesen — $716,667
- Moussa Djitté — $600,000
- Tomas Pochettino — $585,000
- Jhohan Romaña — $460,000
- Washington Corozo — $327,500
- Andrew Tarbell — $308,333
- Felipe Martins — $84,000
- Jared Stroud — $84,000
- Freddy Kleeman — $66,724
- Will Pulisic — $66,724
TOTAL OUTGOING WAGES: $4,248,948
Finally, several OG Austin FC players received new contracts in 2023, including Diego Fagundez (since traded to Galaxy), Julio Cascante, Brad Stuver, and most notably, Sebastián Driussi.
2023 Austin FC Player Salaries (by Guaranteed $)
| First Name | Last Name | Base Salary | Guaranteed $ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sebastián | Driussi | $3,800,000 | $6,022,500 |
| Emiliano | Rigoni | $1,599,996 | $2,047,996 |
| Alexander | Ring | $1,500,000 | $1,640,000 |
| Matt | Hedges | $776,250 | $908,859 |
| Gyasi | Zardes | $800,000 | $800,000 |
| Maximiliano | Urruti | $700,000 | $736,250 |
| Julio | Cascante | $620,000 | $693,750 |
| Leo | Väisänen | $600,000 | $654,500 |
| Moussa | Djitté | $600,000 | $600,000 |
| Jhojan | Romaña | $460,000 | $460,000 |
| Jhojan | Valencia | $400,000 | $445,125 |
| Rodney | Redes | $440,000 | $440,000 |
| Brad | Stuver | $408,000 | $430,813 |
| Ethan | Finlay | $425,000 | $425,000 |
| Adam | Lundqvist | $350,000 | $397,500 |
| Nick | Lima | $375,000 | $375,000 |
| Zan | Kolmanic | $325,000 | $325,000 |
| Jon | Gallagher | $300,000 | $300,000 |
| Memo | Rodríguez | $180,000 | $210,167 |
| Will | Bruin | $200,000 | $200,000 |
| Matt | Bersano | $125,000 | $132,500 |
| Daniel | Pereira | $100,000 | $118,414 |
| Owen | Wolff | $100,000 | $113,053 |
| Kipp | Keller | $100,000 | $112,500 |
| Héctor | Jiménez | $85,444 | $85,444 |
| Alfonso | Ocampo-Chávez | $67,360 | $83,360 |
| Sofiane | Djeffal | $75,325 | $75,325 |
| CJ | Fodrey | $67,360 | $69,360 |
| Charlie | Asensio | $68,775 | $68,775 |
| Damian | Las | $67,360 | $67,360 |
| Total | $19.17M |
While Damian Las, Charlie Asensio, and other players at the bottom of this table play for Austin FC II, they are signed to first team contracts.
Sebastián Driussi is 6th Highest-Paid MLS Player
Remember those days when we scoffed at teams that paid exorbitant amounts for “star” players? In 2023, you can count Driussi Dior in the top-tier of highest paid players.
1. Lionel Messi (Inter Miami) – $20.4M
2. Lorenzo Insigne (Toronto FC) – $15.4M
3. Xherdan Shaqiri (Chicago Fire) – $8.2M
4. Chicharito Hernández (LA Galaxy) – $7.4M
5. Federico Bernardeschi (Toronto FC) – $6.3M
6. Sebastian Driussi (Austin FC) – $6.0M
Austin FC is 6th Highest Spenders in MLS
The Verde rank 6th ($19.17 million) in total MLS roster spending in 2023. Austin jumped 7 spots this year, ranked 13th in 2022. Miami, Toronto, and Galaxy are 1-2-3 as the highest-spending MLS teams.
Austin FC’s total guaranteed wage bill increased by about $5.4 million from 2022. A substantial portion of that increase was due to Austin FC renegotiating Driussi’s contract, increasing his paycheck by some $3.7 million to keep him at the club.
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