MLS transfer record: LAFC could pay biggest fee in league history with Son Heung-min capture

The presence of Major League Soccer in the global transfer market has increased exponentially in recent years.

While MLS is often criticized for being a “retirement league” that looks to bring on aging superstars to increase its profile, the league has pushed hard to be a player for prime-age players that can contribute at a high level. Often, it takes sizable sums of money to convince those players to join, and convince their clubs to part ways.

In the past few seasons, MLS clubs have continued to bring in major superstars, but there has also been a huge increase in financial expenditures as well to acquire top-tier talent that has fallen through the cracks in Europe and South America. Additionally, the league has spent significant funds on acquiring young talent that can blossom in the U.S. league and then be sold for profit.

Still, the biggest money is in the most high-profile players, and that is evident as LAFC look to potentially smash the league’s transfer record to acquire a global superstar.

The Sporting News details the most expensive players in MLS history, and where Heung-Min Son could rank if his move from Tottenham Hotspur is completed.

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MLS record transfer fees for incoming players

As it stands, the biggest fee paid for an incoming player by an MLS club is the reported $24.7 million fee Atlanta United paid for striker Emmanuel Latte Lath before the start of the 2025 season. Latte Lath and fellow big signing Aleksey Miranchuk were meant to replace the departed Thiago Almada, who himself was for a time the league’s record arrival.

In fact, Atlanta United have paid six of the 11 biggest transfer fees in league history, as the club which joined MLS in 2017 has been major players in the transfer market.

Fascinatingly, neither the LA Galaxy nor LAFC appear on the list, despite those two clubs being traditionally known as superstar havens throughout the history of the league. Major superstar signings across MLS, such as Lionel Messi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Olivier Giroud, often arrive via free transfers, as U.S. clubs otherwise would be unable to pay the enormous required fees for such players.

The biggest-ever inter-MLS transfer fee paid was the $13.3 million FC Cincinnati shelled out for Portland Timbers star Evander before the start of 2025. MLS has only recently created a system for cash payments of players between clubs within the league, whereas previously MLS players could only be acquired by other clubs via trades involving other players or the artificial currency known as GAM and TAM.

Figures via Transfermarkt, current as of August 3, 2025.

Heung-Min Son could break MLS transfer record in LAFC move

According to American soccer guru Tom Bogert, LAFC are close to a big-money move for Tottenham star Heung-Min Son.

The overall transfer fee is not yet known, as Bogert reports a range of $20-26 million will be paid to complete the move. That’s a large window, and it leaves the status of the MLS transfer record in doubt.

It’s certainly possible that the fee ultimately tops the $22 million Atlanta United paid for Emmanuel Latte Lath earlier in the year, but it would need to be in the high end of that range to set a new mark.

It also may be difficult to differentiate the two deals at this current time due to the presence of add-ons. Latte Lath’s $22 million base fee could eventually grow larger due to the presence of unspecified add-ons, and Son’s deal is also likely to include add-ons which could increase the eventual mark. If the numbers are close, it may not be known whose fee is higher until their MLS careers come to a close.

MLS record transfer fees for outgoing players

The biggest-ever sale in MLS history was the $34 million Aston Villa shelled out for Chicago Fire striker Jhon Duran. The Premier League club would manage to flip Duran for a big profit when he moved to the Saudi Pro League not long later.

For all their big transfer fees paid to bring on players, Atlanta United have done well to secure major profits as well. Their sales of Thiago Almada and Miguel Almiron are amongst the biggest fees acquired by the league, while striker Ricardo Pepi is the biggest U.S. international sold by an MLS club.