five Greatest-Compensated Women of all ages's College Basketball Coaches
five Greatest-Compensated Women of all ages's College Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Gals’s faculty basketball has seen exponential development in viewership, talent, and competitiveness over the past decade. Along with the amplified popularity and commercial success of the Activity, specifically in NCAA Division I applications, coaching salaries have risen to reflect the worth and Management these prime-tier coaches provide to their teams and universities. As universities continue to speculate inside their Girls’s athletics departments, a number of standout coaches are reaping the economic rewards that include constructing powerhouse plans.
Right here’s a think about the 5 greatest-compensated Gals’s higher education basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not just their extraordinary salaries but will also the achievements that justify their elite payment.
1. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Estimated Yearly Salary: $three.one million
Dawn Staley carries on to become the gold conventional in Girls’s school basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has constructed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Given that taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to various NCAA Ultimate 4 appearances and two national championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she designed headlines by signing a historic 7-yr, $22.four million contract, generating her the best-paid Black head mentor in women's higher education basketball history. That deal has due to the fact been restructured and prolonged with effectiveness incentives, positioning her firmly at the very best of this record.
two. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Yearly Income: $two.nine million
A living legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to some jaw-dropping 11 countrywide titles. His tenure at UConn, which commenced in 1985, has transformed the program into Among the most dominant dynasties in college basketball background—Gentlemen's or Gals’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and consistent efficiency have ensured beneficial deal renewals. His present-day deal features a foundation income, media obligations, apparel discounts, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Match operates. When UConn has confronted the latest worries with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management continue to keep his benefit superior.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out University (LSU)
Approximated Annual Salary: $two.seven million
Just after A prosperous two-10 years run at Baylor, in which she won three countrywide titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball entire world by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In just her next time While using the Tigers, she led them to your 2023 nationwide championship, bringing a whole new degree of excitement and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her substantial-profile arrival came having a lucrative eight-12 months, $23.6 million deal, generating her one among the highest-compensated Girls’s coaches ever. Known for her passionate coaching fashion, flamboyant trend, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Females's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Estimated Yearly Salary: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly crafted a design of regularity at Maryland considering that taking over in 2002. With various convention championships, a countrywide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has kept the Terrapins in nationwide contention for over twenty years.
Her prolonged-term affect and improvement of top rated-tier expertise have created her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Office. Her latest deal incorporates bonuses for academic effectiveness, wins, and postseason achievement—illustrating her twin determination to athletics and pupil growth.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Approximated Yearly Income: $1.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is not simply one of the highest-paid out coaches but will also the winningest mentor in NCAA Girls's basketball history. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time acquire report and it has led Stanford to three national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Final Four appearances.
Even though 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 popularity and financial viability of women’s college basketball. Applications are attracting much more national TV deals, ticket sales are increasing, and company sponsors are getting to be additional invested in Gals's M88 athletics.
The rise in coaching salaries is not just an indication of development—it’s a recognition in the labor, Management, and achievements these coaches convey for their plans as well as the Activity in general.
Honorable Mentions
Although these five coaches now direct the way in which 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 such coaches has manufactured considerable strides with their respective programs and will break in the leading 5 in the coming decades as Girls's basketball proceeds to increase.
Final Feelings
The days of underfunded Girls’s applications and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not simply command higher salaries—In addition they mentor generations of athletes, shape the tradition in their universities, and elevate Ladies’s basketball to new heights. As being the sport continues to improve in reputation and aid, we are able to hope these salaries—and also the profiles of those leaders—to carry on rising.
Girls’s college or university basketball isn’t just retaining speed—it’s location the pace for the future of competitive athletics.