five Greatest-Paid Women's College Basketball Coaches
five Greatest-Paid Women's College Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Gals’s college basketball has observed exponential expansion in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness over the past 10 years. With the elevated reputation and industrial good results in the sport, specifically in NCAA Division I courses, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the worth and leadership these leading-tier coaches bring for their teams and universities. As universities proceed to invest of their Gals’s athletics departments, some standout coaches are reaping the fiscal rewards that include making powerhouse packages.
Right here’s a think about the 5 greatest-compensated Gals’s higher education basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not just their impressive salaries and also the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Believed Annual Income: $3.one million
Dawn Staley continues being the gold normal in women’s faculty basketball coaching. A former WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has designed South Carolina into a perennial powerhouse. Due to the fact taking over This system in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to numerous NCAA Closing Four appearances and two nationwide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she built headlines by signing a historic 7-12 months, $22.four million contract, generating her the best-paid Black head mentor in Women of all ages's higher education basketball record. That deal has considering that been restructured and prolonged with functionality incentives, positioning her firmly at the top of this listing.
two. Geno Auriemma – College of Connecticut
Estimated Annual Wage: $2.nine million
A dwelling legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to the jaw-dropping 11 national titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has remodeled This system into One of the more dominant dynasties in university basketball heritage—Adult males's or women’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and steady effectiveness have ensured lucrative contract renewals. His present contract includes a base salary, media obligations, apparel offers, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Tournament operates. While UConn has confronted recent difficulties with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management keep his benefit high.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Approximated Annual Salary: $two.seven million
Soon after An effective two-decade run at Baylor, where she received a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball world by signing up for LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd season Using the Tigers, M88 she led them to a 2023 countrywide championship, bringing a different stage of excitement and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her significant-profile arrival came having a lucrative eight-yr, $23.six million agreement, producing her certainly one of the best-paid out Ladies’s coaches at any time. Recognized for her passionate coaching fashion, flamboyant manner, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Girls's hoops.
4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Estimated Yearly Salary: $one.four million
Brenda Frese has quietly created a model of regularity at Maryland given that taking on in 2002. With a number of conference championships, a nationwide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Event appearances, Frese has held the Terrapins in countrywide contention for more than two decades.
Her prolonged-term affect and improvement of best-tier expertise have created her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Office. Her present-day deal features bonuses for academic general performance, wins, and postseason good results—illustrating her twin determination to athletics and pupil progress.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Estimated Yearly Wage: $one.three million
Tara VanDerveer is not just one among the best-compensated coaches but additionally the winningest coach in NCAA Gals's basketball record. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get file and it has led Stanford to a few countrywide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and various Final Four appearances.
Whilst VanDerveer has not been one particular to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are correctly compensated. Her Management, enhancement of WNBA stars, and commitment to excellence have solidified her location One of the all-time greats in coaching historical past.
A Shifting Landscape in Gals's Basketball
The expanding salaries of such coaches are reflective of your growing recognition and economic viability of ladies’s higher education basketball. Packages are attracting additional nationwide Television bargains, ticket product sales are escalating, and corporate sponsors are becoming more invested in women's sporting activities.
The increase in coaching salaries is not only a sign of development—it’s a recognition with the exertions, leadership, and success these coaches convey for their plans as well as the Activity in general.
Honorable Mentions
Although these 5 coaches at this time direct the way concerning earnings, various Other folks are on the rise:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Each individual of those coaches has produced sizeable strides with their respective packages and will split into the prime five in the coming years as Gals's basketball continues to improve.
Last Views
The days of underfunded Girls’s applications and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not simply command higher salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, condition the tradition in their universities, and elevate women’s basketball to new heights. Since the Activity continues to increase in recognition and assist, we can assume these salaries—as well as profiles of these leaders—to continue mounting.
Ladies’s higher education basketball isn’t just keeping pace—it’s environment the speed for the way forward for aggressive sports.