5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches
5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Gals’s university basketball has noticed exponential expansion in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last ten years. Along with the increased recognition and commercial achievement from the sport, specifically in NCAA Division I programs, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the value and leadership these leading-tier coaches carry for their teams and universities. As universities proceed to invest within their Females’s athletics departments, several standout coaches are reaping the monetary benefits that include creating powerhouse packages.
In this article’s a consider the 5 best-paid out Ladies’s school basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not only their spectacular salaries but in addition the achievements that justify their elite payment.
1. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Estimated Annual Salary: $3.one million
Dawn Staley continues to generally be the gold regular in Females’s university basketball coaching. A former WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has developed South Carolina into a perennial powerhouse. Since taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to various NCAA Ultimate 4 appearances and two nationwide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she built headlines by signing a historic 7-12 months, $22.four million contract, earning her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in Ladies's college or university basketball historical past. That deal has considering the fact that been restructured and extended with performance incentives, putting her firmly at the highest of the list.
2. Geno Auriemma – College of Connecticut
Believed Once-a-year Salary: $2.9 million
A residing legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to the jaw-dropping eleven national titles. His tenure at UConn, which began in 1985, has remodeled the program into One of the more dominant dynasties in school basketball historical past—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 bargains, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Event operates. Whilst UConn has confronted current issues with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership keep his value higher.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Approximated Yearly Salary: $two.7 million
Soon after a successful two-ten years operate at Baylor, where by she received a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball planet by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In just her next year Along with the Tigers, she led them to your 2023 nationwide championship, bringing a fresh degree of pleasure and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her substantial-profile arrival came with a profitable 8-calendar year, $23.six million contract, making her certainly one of the best-paid out Ladies’s coaches at any time. Recognized for her passionate coaching fashion, flamboyant fashion, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Gals's hoops.
4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Approximated Annual Wage: $1.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly built a product of consistency at Maryland since taking on in 2002. With several meeting championships, a nationwide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Event appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide competition for more than two decades.
Her very long-phrase influence and growth of prime-tier expertise have created her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Section. Her existing offer consists of bonuses for educational effectiveness, wins, and postseason good results—illustrating her dual motivation to athletics and student growth.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Estimated Yearly Salary: $1.three million
Tara VanDerveer is don't just among the best-compensated coaches but in addition the winningest mentor in NCAA women's basketball background. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time earn history and has led Stanford to three national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Ultimate 4 appearances.
Though VanDerveer has not been a person to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, growth of WNBA stars, and dedication to excellence have solidified her position Amongst the all-time greats in coaching history.
A Modifying Landscape in Girls's Basketball
The raising salaries of such coaches are reflective of your growing M88 recognition and economic viability of ladies’s higher education basketball. Packages are attracting far more nationwide Television bargains, ticket product sales are escalating, and corporate sponsors are becoming more invested in Women of all ages'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 bring for their packages as well as the sport 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)
Every of such coaches has manufactured considerable strides with their respective programs and will crack into your top rated five in the coming a long time as Gals's basketball carries on to expand.
Final Feelings
The days of underfunded Women of all ages’s programs and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not merely command substantial salaries—they also mentor generations of athletes, condition the lifestyle in their universities, and elevate Ladies’s basketball to new heights. As being the Activity proceeds to increase in recognition and assist, we can assume these salaries—and the profiles of these leaders—to carry on soaring.
Girls’s college basketball isn’t just maintaining tempo—it’s placing the speed for the way forward for aggressive sports activities.