5 Best-Compensated Women's University Basketball Coaches
5 Best-Compensated Women's University Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Females’s faculty basketball has seen exponential development in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last 10 years. Using the improved level of popularity and professional achievements of your Activity, particularly in NCAA Division I packages, coaching salaries have risen to mirror the value and Management these major-tier coaches convey for their teams and universities. As universities carry on to invest of their Gals’s athletics departments, a number of standout coaches are reaping the fiscal rewards that include making powerhouse packages.
Right here’s a look at the 5 greatest-compensated Gals’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
Believed Yearly Income: $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 developed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Given that taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to many NCAA Last 4 appearances and two national championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she produced headlines by signing a historic seven-yr, $22.four million deal, generating her the best-paid Black head coach in women's higher education basketball history. That deal has given that been restructured and prolonged with efficiency incentives, inserting her firmly at the best of this checklist.
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 your jaw-dropping eleven national titles. His tenure at UConn, which began in 1985, has transformed the program into Among the most dominant dynasties in college basketball background—Gentlemen's or Women of all ages’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and constant efficiency have ensured beneficial deal renewals. His present-day deal features a foundation income, media obligations, apparel offers, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Tournament runs. Whilst UConn has confronted recent difficulties with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership keep his value high.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Approximated Yearly Salary: $two.seven million
Immediately M88 after A prosperous two-10 years run at Baylor, in which she gained 3 national titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball globe by joining LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd year Using the Tigers, she led them to your 2023 nationwide championship, bringing a whole new degree of pleasure and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her large-profile arrival came which has a valuable 8-year, $23.six million agreement, creating her one of the best-paid out women’s coaches at any time. Known for her passionate coaching style, flamboyant vogue, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Females's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Believed Yearly 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 Event appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in nationwide contention for over twenty years.
Her extended-time period effect and enhancement of prime-tier expertise have produced her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Section. Her present deal features bonuses for academic general performance, wins, and postseason good results—illustrating her twin determination to athletics and pupil progress.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Estimated Yearly 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 record. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get file and has led Stanford to three nationwide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Closing 4 appearances.
While VanDerveer has never been a single to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are properly compensated. Her leadership, growth of WNBA stars, and determination to excellence have solidified her put among the all-time greats in coaching history.
A Shifting Landscape in Women of all ages's Basketball
The increasing salaries of these coaches are reflective on the rising attractiveness and economical viability of girls’s college or university basketball. Plans are attracting far more nationwide Television discounts, ticket profits are raising, and company sponsors have become a lot more invested in Ladies's sports activities.
The rise in coaching salaries is not only a sign of development—it’s a recognition of your exertions, leadership, and achievement these coaches bring to their applications and the Activity as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
While these 5 coaches at present lead just how with regard to earnings, numerous Other people are rising:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Every single of these coaches has built important strides with their respective applications and will break in the leading 5 in the coming yrs as Ladies's basketball proceeds to develop.
Closing Ideas
The times of underfunded women’s systems and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not only command significant salaries—they also mentor generations of athletes, form the lifestyle in their universities, and elevate Females’s basketball to new heights. Given that the sport carries on to improve in popularity and assist, we can easily count on these salaries—as well as profiles of these leaders—to continue climbing.
Women of all ages’s university basketball isn’t just preserving pace—it’s setting the tempo for the way forward for aggressive athletics.