5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches
5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Girls’s college basketball has observed exponential expansion in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last 10 years. Using the improved acceptance and industrial good results in the sport, especially in NCAA Division I applications, coaching salaries have risen to reflect the worth and Management these prime-tier coaches carry to their groups and universities. As universities continue on to take a position within their Ladies’s athletics departments, a couple of standout coaches are reaping the financial benefits that come with developing powerhouse programs.
In this article’s a consider the five best-paid out Ladies’s college basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing don't just their amazing salaries but additionally the achievements that justify their elite payment.
1. Dawn Staley – College of South Carolina
Approximated Once-a-year Wage: $three.1 million
Dawn Staley proceeds for being the gold standard in Gals’s university basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has created South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Considering that taking over 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 7-12 months, $22.four million contract, generating her the best-paid Black head mentor in women's higher education basketball record. That deal has considering that been restructured and prolonged with functionality incentives, positioning her firmly at the top of this listing.
two. Geno Auriemma – College of Connecticut
Estimated Annual Wage: $2.9 million
A residing legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to the jaw-dropping 11 national titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has remodeled This system 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 valuable deal renewals. His current contract includes a foundation income, media obligations, clothing deals, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Event operates. Though UConn has confronted the latest challenges with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management continue to keep his benefit superior.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Condition University (LSU)
Estimated Annual Income: $2.7 million
Right after A prosperous two-ten years operate at Baylor, wherever she won 3 countrywide titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball entire world by signing up for LSU in 2021. In only her second period Together with the Tigers, she led them to a 2023 countrywide championship, bringing a completely new stage of excitement and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her superior-profile arrival arrived using a rewarding eight-12 months, $23.6 million deal, building her one among the highest-compensated Girls’s coaches ever. Noted for her passionate coaching type, flamboyant style, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in women'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 since taking up in 2002. With numerous meeting championships, a national title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Event appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide contention for more than twenty years.
Her prolonged-term impression and advancement of major-tier talent have designed her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic department. Her latest offer involves bonuses for tutorial efficiency, 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 M88 is not only one among the best-compensated coaches but additionally the winningest coach in NCAA Gals's basketball history. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get report and it has led Stanford to 3 countrywide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and numerous Last Four appearances.
Even though VanDerveer hasn't been a person to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, advancement of WNBA stars, and commitment to excellence have solidified her spot Amongst the all-time greats in coaching background.
A Shifting Landscape in Women of all ages's Basketball
The increasing salaries of these coaches are reflective of the expanding reputation and fiscal viability of ladies’s higher education basketball. Systems are attracting additional nationwide Tv set discounts, ticket income are rising, and corporate sponsors are becoming more invested in Ladies's sporting activities.
The rise in coaching salaries is not simply a sign of progress—it’s a recognition of the effort, leadership, and results these coaches bring for their systems plus the sport in general.
Honorable Mentions
When these five coaches currently 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 such coaches has manufactured considerable strides with their respective programs and could crack to the leading 5 in the coming yrs as Ladies's basketball proceeds to develop.
Remaining Ideas
The times of underfunded Ladies’s courses and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not just command superior salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, condition the culture of their universities, and elevate Women of all ages’s basketball to new heights. Because the Activity proceeds to expand in attractiveness and help, we can easily anticipate these salaries—plus the profiles of such leaders—to continue climbing.
Women of all ages’s university basketball isn’t just preserving pace—it’s environment the tempo for the way forward for aggressive sporting activities.