Females’s university basketball has viewed exponential advancement in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last ten years. With all the greater attractiveness and professional achievements of the Activity, specifically in NCAA Division I courses, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the worth and leadership these best-tier coaches deliver to their groups and universities. As universities keep on to speculate of their Girls’s athletics departments, some standout coaches are reaping the fiscal rewards that come with building powerhouse packages.
Here’s a think about the 5 optimum-paid out Ladies’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
Believed Yearly Salary: $three.1 million
Dawn Staley carries on for being the gold standard in Gals’s higher education 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 several 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, producing her the best-paid Black head coach in Gals's university basketball heritage. That offer has considering that been restructured and prolonged with functionality incentives, positioning her firmly at the very best of this record.
two. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Yearly Income: $2.9 million
A living legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to your jaw-dropping eleven national titles. His tenure at UConn, which began in 1985, has remodeled the program into One of the more dominant dynasties in university basketball heritage—Adult males's or Ladies’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and regular effectiveness have ensured profitable contract renewals. His recent agreement includes a base wage, media obligations, attire discounts, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Match operates. When UConn has confronted new worries with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management continue to keep his benefit high.
three. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Approximated Yearly Wage: $2.7 million
Following a successful two-ten years operate at Baylor, wherever she received 3 nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball planet by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In just her next year Along with the Tigers, she led them to your 2023 nationwide championship, bringing a whole new degree of excitement and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her substantial-profile arrival came having a lucrative eight-yr, $23.6 million deal, generating her among the highest-compensated Girls’s coaches at any time. Known for her passionate coaching style, 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 Wage: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly developed 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 kept the Terrapins in nationwide rivalry for over twenty years.
Her extended-time period affect and improvement of top rated-tier talent have designed her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic department. Her latest deal involves bonuses for academic functionality, wins, and postseason achievement—illustrating her dual determination to athletics and pupil progress.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Approximated Once-a-year Income: $1.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is don't just among the very best-compensated coaches but also the winningest coach in NCAA Girls's basketball record. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time win file and M88 it has led Stanford to a few 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 dedication to excellence have solidified her area Among the many all-time greats in coaching heritage.
A Switching Landscape in Women'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 promotions, ticket gross sales are expanding, and company sponsors have gotten a lot 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 as well as Activity as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
Though these 5 coaches at present 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 produced significant strides with their respective systems and could crack in to the top five in the approaching yrs as Females's basketball proceeds to expand.
Remaining Feelings
The times of underfunded Females’s programs 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 recognition and guidance, we are able to be expecting these salaries—and also the profiles of those leaders—to carry on rising.
Girls’s college or university basketball isn’t just retaining speed—it’s location the pace for the future of aggressive sporting activities.