Geno Auriemma signs contract extension with Connecticut

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Geno Auriemma signed a five-year contract extension with the University of Connecticut, the school announced Friday. The contract extension, retroactive for 2020-21, will keep the hall of fame coach at Uconn through April 2025, and can be extended for two additional one-year periods by mutual agreement.

The 11-time national championship-winning head coach will receive a base salary of $600,000 per year. He’ll receive additional compensation for speaking, consulting, and media obligations of $2.2 million for the 2020-21 season, which increases by $100,000 each year through the term of the contract. Accounting for annual increases to total compensation, Auriemma is set to take home $3.2 million in 2025, not including additional payouts for postseason success and coach of the year awards.

“I would like to thank [director of athletics] David Benedict and the University of Connecticut leadership for their continued commitment to me and the women’s basketball program,” Auriemma said.  “UConn has been great to me for the last 36 years and I look forward to being here for at least a few more years. I think the future for our program, and UConn Athletics, is exciting.”

In the event of Auriemma’s resignation or retirement in good standing prior to the end of the contract term, he can take a job in the athletics department for a maximum of five years worth $500,000. Otherwise, he will be entitled to a $1.5 million payment within 90 days of his departure. If Auriemma were fired without just cause, the university would owe him a $5 million buyout in the first year of his contract, decreasing by $500,000 each year afterwards.

Auriemma, who will be age 71 at the end of the contract, surpassed Pat Summitt’s 1,098 career wins in January 2021. He is now in second place for most wins in the sport with 1,119 wins, behind only Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer. He has led Uconn to a record 13 consecutive national semifinal appearances and has a top recruiting class coming in this season, including No. 1 overall recruit Azzi Fudd.