5 Highest-Paid Ladies's College or university Basketball Coaches
5 Highest-Paid Ladies's College or university Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Women of all ages’s university basketball has viewed exponential advancement in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last 10 years. With the elevated reputation and industrial achievement in the sport, especially in NCAA Division I programs, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the worth and leadership these leading-tier coaches deliver for their groups and universities. As universities keep on to take a position in their women’s athletics departments, a handful of standout coaches are reaping the economical benefits that come with building powerhouse courses.
Below’s a consider the 5 optimum-paid out women’s college basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not simply their amazing salaries but additionally the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Approximated Once-a-year Salary: $3.one million
Dawn Staley continues to generally be the gold typical in Females’s school basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has developed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Considering that 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 created headlines by signing a historic seven-yr, $22.four million contract, generating her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in Ladies's college or university basketball historical past. That offer has given that been restructured and prolonged with efficiency incentives, inserting her firmly at the top of this listing.
two. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Yearly Income: $two.9 million
A residing legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to your jaw-dropping eleven national titles. His tenure at UConn, which began in 1985, has remodeled This system into one of the most dominant dynasties in higher education basketball record—Males's or Girls’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and dependable efficiency have ensured beneficial deal renewals. His current contract includes a base salary, media obligations, apparel discounts, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Match runs. Even though UConn has confronted new challenges with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management keep his value higher.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State College (LSU)
Believed Once-a-year Income: $two.7 million
Soon after An effective two-decade run at Baylor, exactly where she won a few countrywide titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball earth by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In just her second season Using the Tigers, she led them to a 2023 countrywide championship, bringing a new amount of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her high-profile arrival arrived that has a beneficial 8-yr, $23.six million agreement, generating her among the highest-compensated Gals’s coaches ever. Known for her passionate coaching design and style, flamboyant vogue, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Females's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Estimated Once-a-year Wage: $one.four million
Brenda Frese has quietly built a product of regularity at Maryland due to the fact taking up in 2002. With numerous meeting championships, a national title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Event appearances, Frese has held the Terrapins in countrywide competition for more than two decades.
Her long-expression influence and enhancement of prime-tier expertise have created her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Office. Her existing offer consists of bonuses for educational overall performance, wins, and postseason achievements—illustrating her dual motivation to athletics and university student advancement.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Estimated Annual Wage: $one.three million
Tara VanDerveer is not just one among the best-paid coaches but additionally the winningest coach in NCAA Gals's basketball history. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time acquire report and it has led Stanford to 3 national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and numerous Last 4 appearances.
Although VanDerveer hasn't been one particular to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are correctly compensated. Her Management, advancement of WNBA stars, and motivation to excellence have solidified her put among the all-time greats in coaching historical past.
A Transforming Landscape in Women's Basketball
The escalating salaries of those coaches are reflective with the growing reputation and fiscal viability of ladies’s faculty basketball. Courses are attracting more national TV offers, ticket revenue are escalating, and corporate sponsors are becoming much more invested in Ladies's sports.
The increase in coaching salaries is not merely an indication of progress—it’s a recognition in the hard work, Management, and achievements these coaches convey for their packages along with the sport as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
Though these 5 coaches at the moment lead just how concerning earnings, various Other folks are increasing:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Every of such coaches has manufactured considerable strides with their respective applications and will break into your prime five in the approaching a long time as women's basketball carries on to develop.
Remaining Ideas
The times of underfunded Females’s programs and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not simply command large salaries—In addition they mentor generations of athletes, shape the lifestyle of their M88 universities, and elevate Girls’s basketball to new heights. Because the Activity proceeds to expand in popularity and assist, we can assume these salaries—and the profiles of those leaders—to carry on rising.
Girls’s college basketball isn’t just trying to keep rate—it’s setting the tempo for the way forward for aggressive sports.