5 Best-Compensated Women's University Basketball Coaches
5 Best-Compensated Women's University Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Gals’s university basketball has found exponential growth in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last ten years. With all the enhanced level of popularity and business results with the Activity, particularly in NCAA Division I packages, coaching salaries have risen to mirror the value and Management these top rated-tier coaches provide to their teams and universities. As universities continue to speculate inside their Girls’s athletics departments, several standout coaches are reaping the economic rewards that include constructing powerhouse plans.
Here’s a think about the five highest-compensated Girls’s university basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not only their spectacular 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 college or university basketball coaching. A former WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has crafted South Carolina into a perennial powerhouse. Considering the fact that taking up This system in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to several NCAA Remaining Four appearances and two nationwide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she made headlines by signing a historic 7-calendar year, $22.4 million agreement, earning her the very best-compensated Black head coach in Girls's college basketball historical past. That offer has given that been restructured and prolonged with efficiency incentives, inserting her firmly at the top of this checklist.
two. Geno Auriemma – College of Connecticut
Believed Annual Salary: $2.nine million
A dwelling legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to a jaw-dropping 11 national titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has reworked This system into Probably the most dominant dynasties in higher education basketball record—Males's or Females’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and reliable performance have ensured profitable agreement renewals. His recent agreement features a foundation wage, media obligations, attire discounts, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Match runs. Even though UConn has confronted modern troubles with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management hold his price significant.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Condition University (LSU)
Estimated Once-a-year Income: $two.7 million
Soon after An effective two-10 years run at Baylor, where she received a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball globe by joining LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd period With all the Tigers, she led them to some 2023 national championship, bringing a new amount of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her high-profile arrival arrived by using a rewarding 8-calendar year, $23.6 million contract, earning her considered one of the very best-paid Women of all ages’s coaches at any time. Known for her passionate coaching design and style, flamboyant vogue, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Girls's hoops.
4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Estimated Yearly Salary: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly designed a model of regularity at Maryland considering that taking over in 2002. With many conference championships, a nationwide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide competition for more than two decades.
Her very long-phrase effects and growth of top-tier talent have built her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her present-day deal incorporates bonuses for academic functionality, wins, and postseason achievement—illustrating her dual determination to athletics and student growth.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Estimated M88 Yearly Wage: $one.three million
Tara VanDerveer is not just considered one of the best-paid coaches but in addition the winningest mentor in NCAA Women of all ages's basketball background. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time acquire report and it has led Stanford to 3 national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and numerous Ultimate Four appearances.
When VanDerveer hasn't been one to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, advancement of WNBA stars, and motivation to excellence have solidified her position Amongst the all-time greats in coaching history.
A Altering Landscape in Females's Basketball
The rising salaries of those coaches are reflective on the rising attractiveness and financial viability of girls’s college basketball. Programs are attracting much more national Television set promotions, ticket gross sales are expanding, and company sponsors have gotten far more invested in Girls's sports activities.
The rise in coaching salaries is not merely an indication of progress—it’s a recognition from the effort, Management, and accomplishment these coaches deliver to their courses plus the sport as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
Though these five coaches presently guide how with regards to earnings, a number of others are going up:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Every single of these coaches has designed important strides with their respective applications and will break in the best 5 in the coming decades as Girls's basketball proceeds to increase.
Final Feelings
The times of underfunded Girls’s programs 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. As being the Activity continues to increase in recognition and guidance, we can assume these salaries—and the profiles of these leaders—to continue mounting.
Ladies’s higher education basketball isn’t just keeping tempo—it’s placing the speed for the way forward for aggressive sports.