Gals’s higher education basketball has found exponential growth in viewership, talent, and competitiveness over the past ten years. Together with the amplified attractiveness 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 provide to their teams and universities. As universities continue to speculate inside their Girls’s athletics departments, several standout coaches are reaping the monetary benefits that include creating powerhouse applications.
Here’s a think about the five highest-compensated Females’s school basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not only their spectacular salaries and also 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 faculty basketball coaching. A former WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has designed South Carolina into a perennial powerhouse. Considering the fact that taking up 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 built headlines by signing a historic 7-12 months, $22.four million contract, building her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in Ladies's faculty basketball history. That deal has considering the fact that been restructured and extended with general performance incentives, placing her firmly at the highest of the record.
2. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Yearly Income: $two.nine million
A living legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to a jaw-dropping 11 nationwide titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has reworked This system into Among the most dominant dynasties in university basketball heritage—Males's or Girls’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and consistent general performance have ensured rewarding agreement renewals. His latest deal features a foundation wage, media obligations, attire specials, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Match operates. When UConn has confronted new worries with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management retain his price superior.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Condition University (LSU)
Estimated Annual Salary: $2.7 million
Following a successful two-ten years operate at Baylor, wherever she gained three national titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball earth by signing up for 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 significant-profile arrival came having a M88 lucrative eight-yr, $23.6 million agreement, producing her among the best-paid out Females’s coaches at any time. Recognized for her passionate coaching fashion, flamboyant manner, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Gals's hoops.
4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Estimated Once-a-year Salary: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly crafted a design of regularity at Maryland due to the fact taking over in 2002. With various convention championships, a countrywide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has saved the Terrapins in national rivalry for over 20 years.
Her long-expression influence and progress of best-tier expertise have produced her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Section. Her current offer includes bonuses for educational general performance, wins, and postseason accomplishment—illustrating her twin commitment to athletics and scholar development.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Approximated Yearly Income: $one.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is not merely amongst the highest-paid coaches and also the winningest mentor in NCAA Ladies's basketball historical past. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time gain record and has led Stanford to three national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Ultimate 4 appearances.
Though VanDerveer hasn't been 1 to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are properly compensated. Her Management, progress of WNBA stars, and determination to excellence have solidified her place among the all-time greats in coaching background.
A Shifting Landscape in Gals's Basketball
The expanding salaries of such coaches are reflective of your growing recognition and economic viability of ladies’s university basketball. Packages are attracting far more nationwide Television bargains, ticket revenue are growing, and corporate sponsors are getting to be extra invested in Women of all ages's athletics.
The rise in coaching salaries is not just an indication of development—it’s a recognition in the labor, Management, and achievements these coaches provide to their applications and the Activity as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
Whilst these 5 coaches at the moment lead just how with regard to earnings, many Other people are rising:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Just about every of these coaches has built major strides with their respective plans and will break into your best 5 in the coming decades as Girls's basketball continues to increase.
Final Feelings
The days of underfunded Girls’s programs and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not simply command higher salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, condition the tradition in their universities, and elevate Ladies’s basketball to new heights. As being the Activity continues to increase in recognition and assist, we can assume these salaries—and the profiles of these leaders—to continue mounting.
Ladies’s higher education basketball isn’t just keeping tempo—it’s environment the speed for the way forward for aggressive sports.