Once Hirving “Chucky” Lozano's departure from San Diego FC was announced, speculation about a possible return to Liga MX spread like wildfire of gunpowder, but the reality is that the Mexican striker's high salary in MLS makes this situation almost improbable.

News immediately began circulating that Pumas would be interested in the services of the former Pachuca, PSV Eindhoven, and San Diego FC player, but the reality is that not even the most financially powerful teams in Mexican soccer, such as America, Cruz Azul, Tigres, Monterrey, Toluca, and Chivas, would dare to pay the $7.6 million annual salary (136,633,560 Mexican pesos at the exchange rate of Saturday, January 10, 2026) all at once.

An outrageous amount, since the famous "Chucky" was one of the franchise players of Major League Soccer (MLS) and his salary was only surpassed by Inter Miami's Argentine star Lionel Messi with $20,446,667, South Korea's Son Heung-Min of LAC with $11.1 million, and Spain's Sergio Busquets also of Inter Miami $8.7 million dollars

How much does “Chucky” Lozano really earn?

The salary of Mexican forward Hirving “Chucky” Lozano is not an open secret or some random arithmetic estimate. On the contrary, it is data from the MLS Players Association, where the issue of salaries is seriously and where Lozano had taken the fifth highest contract in North American soccer in 2025.

His earnings paid by San Diego FC as a designated player totaled approximately $7.6 million annually (136,633,560 Mexican pesos at today's exchange rate), which undoubtedly generates a lot of resentment that any Mexican team would take on that kind of financial burden.

To make matters worse, the Pachuca academy product has signed a contract with the southern border region of the United States until 2028, which means they will have to pay him his full salary for the next two years, Besides having paid close to $12 million to PSV Eindhoven for his services, they will undoubtedly seek to recover some of their investment.

Salaries in Liga MX

It is presumed, because in Liga MX, due to double salaries, player earnings are a closely guarded secret, the reality is that among the highest earners, such as the Argentine Angel Correa from Atletico de Madrid, Allan Saint-Maximin from Fenerbahce in Turkey, or Sergio Canales from Betis in Seville, they don't come close to what "Chucky" Lozano earns.

The salary difference would be around $2.5 million, and that seems like a significant obstacle, especially since Lozano is a very difficult player and his departure from San Diego FC wasn't due to a lack of footballing ability, but rather because his mannerisms and character didn't mesh with coach Mikey Varas.

A loan negotiation

The last option for him to play in Liga MX is for a major team to be willing to loan him out and reach an agreement on how to pay his salary, because otherwise his place on the Mexican national team for the 2026 World Cup is in serious jeopardy.