Charlotte FC Hangs Up on Big Pat
Charlotte FC is reportedly close to an $8 million deal that would send star striker Patrick Agyemang to English Championship side Derby County. Why didn't the club accept the charges to keep Big Pat?
One of Charlotte’s most famous residents - evangelist Billy Graham - was fond of the old cliche that compares one’s spending to one’s values.
As the Reverend put it, “Give me five minutes with a person's checkbook, and I will tell you where their heart is.”
In the case of the soccer team that came to the Queen City a century after Billy did, Charlotte FC’s heart is no longer in star striker Patrick Agyemang, whose meteoric rise to the United States Men’s National Team has led to interest in the player from around the world.
Instead of meeting Agyemang’s salary requirements, Charlotte FC is set to sell the player for a reported $8 million.
In a sport currently flush with money, Agyemang is paid the bare minimum. Under a “rookie contract,” he has made the MLS minimum salary since being drafted by Charlotte in 2022.
Last year, that minimum salary figure was $71,401. For 2025, Agyemang’s pay increased slightly to $104,000 as he moved to a senior roster spot.
The rookie salary made sense in 2023, when Agyemang played for Crown Legacy FC, the organization’s second team. However, last season Agyemang led Charlotte FC in goals with 10, and this year he remains the team leader with 6.
With Agyemang 9th in overall MLS jersey sales in 2025, second only to Wilfried Zaha for Charlotte FC players; and scoring 5 goals for the United States in only 9 appearances, it’s surprising Agyemang’s contract has stayed at the minimum pay rate.
Multiple outlets, including Soccer Sheet, have reported a new contract for Agyemang has been in the works for months, but that the parties haven’t been able to meet on the salary amount. However, based on recent salary figures from the MLS Players Association, none of the offers made to Agyemang would put him in the top 11 paid players on the squad despite his status as starting striker.
Even compared to many of his second- or third-tier USMNT teammates, Agyemang’s salary is low; for example, Vancouver Whitecaps forward Brian White — who has scored one goal in 7 appearances for the U.S. — earns an annual salary of $1 million.
Soccer Sheet can report Charlotte FC has never offered Agyemang even half of that figure thanks to a source with knowledge of the ongoing negotiations.
“We’re not in a position as a club where we need to sell anybody, especially if it’s going to weaken our team …We spoke to Patrick and his representatives to try and sign a longer deal with this club on better wages, but they turned that down. We’ll see where we go with it. But as I’ve always said, he’s our player for another 18 months, and unless there’s a deal that’s right for this football club, then Patrick is our player, and we enjoy having him here.”
Charlotte FC Head Coach Dean Smith
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Soccer Sheet to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.