Gals’s school basketball has viewed exponential growth in viewership, talent, and competitiveness over the past decade. With the improved reputation and industrial accomplishment with the Activity, particularly in NCAA Division I plans, coaching salaries have risen to reflect the value and Management these top rated-tier coaches provide to their teams and universities. As universities continue to speculate inside their Girls’s athletics departments, a number of standout coaches are reaping the economic rewards that include constructing powerhouse plans.
Here’s a think about the five highest-compensated Gals’s higher education basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not just their extraordinary salaries but will also the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Believed Yearly Income: $3.one million
Dawn Staley continues to be the gold typical in Females’s college basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has built South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Because taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to many NCAA Last 4 appearances and two countrywide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she manufactured headlines by signing a historic seven-yr, $22.four million contract, building her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in Women of all ages's faculty basketball background. That offer has since been restructured and extended with performance incentives, putting her firmly at the highest of the list.
2. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Once-a-year Salary: $2.9 million
A living 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 functionality have ensured valuable deal renewals. His current agreement features a foundation income, media obligations, clothing deals, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Tournament operates. While UConn has faced recent difficulties with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management keep his value higher.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Believed Yearly Wage: $2.seven million
Following An effective two-10 years run at Baylor, exactly where she won a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball planet by joining LSU in 2021. In only her next year Together with the Tigers, she led them into a 2023 national championship, bringing a brand new level of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her higher-profile arrival arrived which has a valuable 8-year, $23.six million agreement, creating her one of the best-paid out Ladies’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 designed a design of regularity at Maryland considering that taking over in 2002. With many conference championships, a countrywide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Tournament appearances, Frese has retained the Terrapins in national competition for over 20 years.
Her long-phrase impact and growth of leading-tier expertise have made her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her present-day deal incorporates bonuses for academic functionality, wins, and postseason success—illustrating her dual motivation to athletics and student progress.
five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Estimated Yearly Wage: $one.three million
Tara VanDerveer is not only one among the best-paid coaches but also the winningest coach in NCAA Gals's basketball record. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get file and it has led Stanford to 3 national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and numerous Ultimate 4 appearances.
When VanDerveer hasn't been one to M88 chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, growth of WNBA stars, and motivation to excellence have solidified her put Amongst the all-time greats in coaching history.
A Altering Landscape in Females's Basketball
The rising salaries of those coaches are reflective on the rising attractiveness and financial viability of girls’s college basketball. Programs are attracting more countrywide Television set specials, ticket profits are raising, and company sponsors have become much more invested in Ladies's sports.
The increase in coaching salaries is not simply a sign of development—it’s a recognition with the labor, Management, and results these coaches carry to their programs as well as the sport in general.
Honorable Mentions
Even though 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)
Each of those coaches has produced sizeable strides with their respective packages and could split into the top rated five in the coming years as Gals's basketball continues to improve.
Last 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 women’s basketball to new heights. Since the Activity continues to expand in popularity and help, we can easily count on these salaries—plus the profiles of these leaders—to continue climbing.
Women of all ages’s university basketball isn’t just preserving rate—it’s setting the tempo for the future of aggressive athletics.