Caitlin Clark Becomes WNBA’s Richest Star Despite $76K Salary; Rubs Shoulders With Veteran Simone Biles

The WNBA season might be over but the accolades keep coming for Caitlin Clark! The reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year is successfully taking a break from basketball after playing her senior year at Iowa and her debut season as a pro back-to-back. The Indiana Fever guard has been among the rarer few to have a high rookie salary. By WNBA standards, that is, earning $76,535 during the 2024 season. And yet, she has landed on the richest women’s sports stars list!

Sportico’s Kurt Badenhousen took to X to share the latest report on the top 10 highest-paid female athletes. Where tennis superstar Coco Gauff led the charge for the second year, hoops fans will be pleased to see the Iowa sensation in the Top 10, the only basketball player on the list. Her total earnings are listed as $11.1 million, just behind No. 9 Simone Biles, also at $11.1 million.

Although her winnings are listed at 100k, Clark’s contract with the Fever is $338,056/ four years. This season, $76k was her 2024 paycheck number but she can make up to $97,582 in annual salary in the final year of her deal.

In addition to her base salary of $76,535 as a rookie, Sportico lists the rest of Clark’s $100k earnings as bonus payments. The biggest came from her selection to the All-WNBA first team with a $10,300 bonus, the first rookie since Candace Parker in 2008 to be selected.

Since the Fever reached the first round of the playoffs, each player was paid a bonus of $1,616 and before that, Clark’s participation in the All-Star game earned her $2,575 extra. Next year, her salary will reportedly go up to $78,066.

Although Biles has the same aggregate total as the Fever player, the gymnast is listed above her, owing to a higher salary/ winnings at $135k. Additionally, there were No. 22’s multiple NIL deals from college, including brands like Gatorade, State Farm, and Panini that translated into endorsement deals. Her current biggest deal is with Nike.

While this goes on in the W offseason, there is another platform that Clark is sharing with Simone Biles.

Caitlin Clark in contention for BBC Sports Personality’s World Sport Star of the Year

Given that only 6 players worldwide have been shortlisted, the BBC Sports Personality’s World Sport Star of the Year award is as prestigious as they come. And along with Simone Biles, Caitlin Clark is a contender. Set to be presented during the show live on BBC One on Tuesday, 17 December, the voting is now open.

Alongside Clark, BBC’s official website also lists other contenders as Swiss para-athletics star Catherine Debrunner, Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis, Dutch runner Sifan Hassan, and French swimmer Leon Marchand. The 2023 award was picked up by Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.

While some would have rather seen more veteran names like A’ja Wilson on these lists, it’s Caitlin Clark whose impact has been felt the most in women’s hoops this year. The rising WNBA star is only beginning her journey to superstardom and might even move up in Sportico’s list if the pay gap eventually gets bridged.