5 Best-Compensated Women's University Basketball Coaches
5 Best-Compensated Women's University Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Women of all ages’s higher education basketball has found exponential growth in viewership, talent, and competitiveness over the past ten years. Together with the amplified popularity and professional success of the Activity, specifically in NCAA Division I courses, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the value and leadership these top-tier coaches bring for their teams and universities. As universities proceed to invest of their Women of all ages’s athletics departments, some standout coaches are reaping the money rewards that include setting up powerhouse systems.
Listed here’s a look at the 5 maximum-paid Women of all ages’s faculty basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not merely their extraordinary salaries but also the achievements that justify their elite payment.
1. Dawn Staley – College of South Carolina
Estimated Yearly Salary: $3.one million
Dawn Staley carries on to become the gold conventional in Females’s school basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has constructed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Because taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to a number of NCAA Final Four appearances and two countrywide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she created headlines by signing a historic seven-year, $22.4 million deal, creating her the very best-compensated Black head coach in Gals's school basketball heritage. That offer has given that been restructured and prolonged with overall performance 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 countrywide 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, clothing promotions, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Event operates. When UConn has confronted the latest worries with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management retain his value substantial.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State University (LSU)
Approximated Yearly Salary: $two.7 million
Right after a successful two-ten years operate at Baylor, the place she gained three national titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball earth by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In just her second time with the Tigers, she led them to the 2023 countrywide championship, bringing a whole new degree of excitement and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her substantial-profile arrival came having a lucrative eight-yr, $23.six million agreement, producing her among the highest-paid out Females’s coaches at any time. Recognized for her passionate coaching design, flamboyant fashion, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Women of all ages's hoops.
4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Approximated Once-a-year Wage: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly built a design of consistency at Maryland due to the fact taking up in 2002. With various convention championships, a countrywide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has saved the Terrapins in nationwide rivalry for over twenty years.
Her extended-time period effect and enhancement of prime-tier expertise have created her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Office. Her existing offer consists of bonuses for educational M88 performance, wins, and postseason results—illustrating her twin dedication to athletics and scholar development.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Believed Once-a-year Salary: $1.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is not simply certainly one of the very best-paid out coaches but will also the winningest coach in NCAA Girls's basketball record. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time win document and has led Stanford to a few nationwide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and various Final Four appearances.
Whilst VanDerveer has not been just one to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are correctly compensated. Her Management, development of WNBA stars, and commitment to excellence have solidified her spot One of the all-time greats in coaching heritage.
A Transforming Landscape in Women of all ages's Basketball
The increasing salaries of these coaches are reflective from the expanding acceptance and fiscal viability of ladies’s higher education basketball. Systems are attracting additional nationwide Tv set discounts, ticket product sales are rising, and corporate sponsors are becoming more invested in women's sporting activities.
The increase in coaching salaries is not simply a sign of development—it’s a recognition with the exertions, leadership, and success these coaches convey for their packages as well as the sport in general.
Honorable Mentions
Although these five coaches now direct the way in which in terms of earnings, quite a few Some others are increasing:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Every of such coaches has created substantial strides with their respective courses and could crack to the top 5 in the approaching several years as Ladies's basketball proceeds to develop.
Remaining Ideas
The times of underfunded Ladies’s systems and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not just command significant salaries—they also mentor generations of athletes, form the society of their universities, and elevate Gals’s basketball to new heights. Because the sport proceeds to develop in level of popularity and assistance, we could anticipate these salaries—along with the profiles of such leaders—to continue growing.
Women of all ages’s school basketball isn’t just preserving rate—it’s setting the tempo for the future of aggressive sporting activities.