Ladies’s school basketball has noticed exponential progress in viewership, talent, and competitiveness over the past decade. While using the increased popularity and commercial 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 groups and universities. As universities continue to speculate of their Gals’s athletics departments, some 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 and also the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Believed Annual Income: $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 over 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 women's higher education basketball history. That deal has due to the fact been restructured and extended with effectiveness incentives, placing her firmly at the very best of the record.
two. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Estimated Yearly Wage: $two.nine million
A dwelling legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to some jaw-dropping 11 nationwide titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has reworked This system into Probably the most dominant dynasties in higher education basketball heritage—men's or Ladies’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and regular general performance have ensured profitable contract renewals. His existing agreement includes a base wage, media obligations, apparel offers, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Tournament runs. Whilst UConn has faced current problems with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership maintain his value higher.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Approximated Yearly Salary: $2.seven million
Just after A prosperous two-10 years run at Baylor, in which she won a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball planet by joining LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd period Together with the Tigers, she led them to some 2023 national championship, bringing a new amount of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her high-profile arrival arrived by using M88 a worthwhile 8-calendar year, $23.6 million contract, earning her considered one of the very best-paid Gals’s coaches ever. Noted for her passionate coaching model, flamboyant style, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in women's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Approximated Annual Wage: $1.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly constructed 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 held the Terrapins in countrywide competition for more than two decades.
Her very long-phrase effects and growth of top-tier talent have built her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her present-day deal features bonuses for academic effectiveness, wins, and postseason achievement—illustrating her twin determination to athletics and pupil enhancement.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Approximated Yearly Salary: $one.three million
Tara VanDerveer is not just one among the highest-paid out 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.
Although VanDerveer has never 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 motivation to excellence have solidified her position Amongst the all-time greats in coaching record.
A Changing Landscape in Ladies's Basketball
The escalating salaries of those coaches are reflective in the increasing level of popularity and economical viability of girls’s college or university basketball. Programs are attracting more countrywide Television set specials, ticket profits are expanding, and company sponsors have gotten far more invested in Females's sports activities.
The rise in coaching salaries is not merely an indication of progress—it’s a recognition of the effort, Management, and accomplishment these coaches carry to their courses plus the Activity as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
Though these five coaches presently guide how regarding earnings, a number of others are increasing:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Every of such coaches has manufactured major strides with their respective systems and will break into your top rated five in the approaching several years as Ladies's basketball proceeds to increase.
Final Feelings
The times of underfunded Gals’s courses and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not merely command higher salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, shape the tradition in their universities, and elevate Ladies’s basketball to new heights. As being the Activity continues to improve in reputation and aid, we are able to hope these salaries—as well as the profiles of such leaders—to carry on increasing.
Gals’s school basketball isn’t just trying to keep rate—it’s setting the tempo for the future of aggressive sporting activities.