five Maximum-Paid Ladies's College or university Basketball Coaches
Women’s university basketball has viewed exponential advancement in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last 10 years. Using the improved recognition and commercial achievement from the sport, especially in NCAA Division I applications, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the worth and leadership these major-tier coaches convey for their teams and universities. As universities carry on to speculate of their Gals’s athletics departments, a number of standout coaches are reaping the fiscal rewards that include constructing powerhouse plans.Right here’s a think about the five highest-compensated Girls’s university basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not only their extraordinary salaries but in addition the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Approximated Annual Wage: $3.one million
Dawn Staley continues being the gold normal in women’s higher education basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has developed 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 built headlines by signing a historic 7-12 months, $22.four million agreement, producing her the best-paid Black head coach in women's higher education basketball history. That deal has due to the fact been restructured and extended with overall performance incentives, placing her firmly at the very best of the record.
2. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Estimated Yearly Income: $two.nine million
A living legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to some jaw-dropping eleven countrywide titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has transformed 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 existing agreement includes a base salary, media obligations, apparel bargains, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Match runs. Although UConn has faced latest problems with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership maintain his worth large.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State College (LSU)
Believed Yearly Wage: $2.seven million
After A prosperous two-ten years run at Baylor, in which she won three nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball globe M88 by joining LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd period With all the Tigers, she led them to some 2023 national championship, bringing a new amount of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her superior-profile arrival arrived by using a rewarding 8-calendar year, $23.6 million contract, building her one among the highest-compensated Gals’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 Yearly Wage: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly developed a product of consistency at Maryland because 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 contention for more than two decades.
Her prolonged-phrase effects and growth of leading-tier expertise have built her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her present-day deal incorporates bonuses for educational performance, wins, and postseason accomplishment—illustrating her twin commitment to athletics and scholar development.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Approximated Once-a-year Income: $1.three million
Tara VanDerveer is not simply one among the very best-compensated coaches but additionally the winningest coach in NCAA Gals's basketball history. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get file and it has led Stanford to 3 countrywide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and various Final Four appearances.
Although 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 historical past.
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 much 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 on the labor, Management, and achievements these coaches provide to their applications and also the Activity as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
Whilst these 5 coaches at the moment lead just how with regard to earnings, many Other individuals are on the rise:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Each individual of those coaches has made major strides with their respective plans and will break into your prime 5 in the coming decades as Girls's basketball continues to increase.
Final Feelings
The times of underfunded Females’s programs and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not merely command high salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, condition the culture in their universities, and elevate Girls’s basketball to new heights. As being the sport proceeds to develop in popularity and aid, we can easily assume these salaries—plus the profiles of these leaders—to continue mounting.
Ladies’s higher education basketball isn’t just keeping pace—it’s environment the speed for the way forward for competitive sporting activities.