5 Highest-Compensated Ladies's Higher education Basketball Coaches
5 Highest-Compensated Ladies's Higher education Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Ladies’s university basketball has viewed exponential growth in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last ten years. Together with the amplified popularity and commercial achievement from the sport, especially in NCAA Division I programs, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the worth and leadership these best-tier coaches carry to their groups and universities. As universities go on to speculate inside their Girls’s athletics departments, several standout coaches are reaping the monetary rewards that include constructing powerhouse plans.
Here’s a think about the five greatest-compensated Girls’s higher education basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not just their impressive salaries but will also the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Estimated Yearly Salary: $three.1 million
Dawn Staley carries on to become the gold conventional in Girls’s university basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has developed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Due to the fact taking over This system in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to multiple NCAA Closing Four appearances and two nationwide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she built 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 because been restructured and prolonged with overall performance incentives, inserting her firmly at the best 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 nationwide titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has remodeled This system into one of the most dominant dynasties in higher education basketball heritage—men's or Females’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and reliable performance have ensured rewarding agreement renewals. His latest deal features a foundation wage, media obligations, attire specials, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Match operates. Even though UConn has confronted new worries with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management retain his benefit superior.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Condition University (LSU)
Estimated Annual Salary: $two.seven million
Immediately after An effective two-10 years run at Baylor, exactly where she won a few countrywide titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball entire world by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In just her next time Along with the Tigers, she led them to your 2023 nationwide championship, bringing a fresh level of pleasure and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her substantial-profile arrival came with a valuable eight-yr, $23.six million agreement, producing her certainly one of the highest-paid out Females’s coaches ever. Recognized for her passionate coaching design, flamboyant fashion, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Women of all ages's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Approximated Annual Income: $1.four million
Brenda Frese has quietly developed a product of consistency at Maryland because taking on in 2002. With several meeting championships, a national title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide contention for more than two decades.
Her very long-phrase effects and advancement of top-tier talent have built her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her present-day deal incorporates bonuses for academic effectiveness, wins, and postseason good results—illustrating her twin determination to athletics and college student enhancement.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Approximated Once-a-year Salary: $1.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is not simply certainly one of the very best-compensated coaches but also the winningest coach in NCAA Girls's basketball heritage. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time win document and has led Stanford to a few countrywide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and various Final Four appearances.
Although VanDerveer has not been a person to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, improvement of WNBA stars, and dedication to excellence have solidified her area Amongst the all-time greats in coaching record.
A Changing Landscape in Females's Basketball
The rising salaries of those coaches are reflective with the rising popularity and financial viability of women’s school basketball. Applications are attracting a lot more national TV offers, ticket revenue are growing, and corporate sponsors are getting to be extra invested in Gals's sporting activities.
The rise in coaching salaries is not only a sign of development—it’s a recognition with the labor, leadership, and M88 success these coaches convey for their packages as well as the sport in general.
Honorable Mentions
Even though these five coaches now guide the best way when it comes to earnings, several Many others are going up:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Each and every of these coaches has designed considerable strides with their respective programs and will break in the best 5 in the coming decades as Girls's basketball continues to improve.
Last Feelings
The days of underfunded Gals’s applications and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches don't just command large salaries—In addition they mentor generations of athletes, shape the lifestyle in their universities, and elevate Females’s basketball to new heights. Given that the sport carries on to mature in acceptance and support, we will hope these salaries—as well as the profiles of such leaders—to carry on increasing.
Gals’s college basketball isn’t just trying to keep rate—it’s location the pace for the future of competitive athletics.