Trinity Rodman’s Salary Compared to Other Female Athletes

Updated March 30, 2022

Trinity Rodman’s salary made headlines, and history, when she signed a four-year deal with the Washington Spirit of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). The Washington Spirit are the 2021 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Champions, and Rodman is one of their top players. So, let’s see how her salary really stacks up.

Table of Contents

• Trinity Rodman’s Salary Breakdown
• Rodman’s Salary Comparison
  • Professional U.S. Women’s Team Sports
    • Soccer (National Women’s Soccer League)
    • Hockey (Premier Hockey Federation)
    • Basketball (Women’s National Basketball Association)
  • European Women’s Soccer Leagues
  • Men’s U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS)
  • Average U.S. Personal Income
• Rodman’s Worth to a Team and a League
• Where the Real Money Is for a Female Athlete

Trinity Rodman’s Salary Breakdown

In short, Rodman’s historic deal is worth $1.1 million dollars with a base salary of $281,000 per year. It is a three-year deal with a fourth-year option that the Spirit will be exercising in 2022. This is a 570% increase from her three-year rookie deal in 2021. Not bad considering most Americans only get a 3% raise.

And just for the record, Rodman’s 2021 rookie deal was already more than many other NWSL salaries. In fact, in 2021 the minimum NWSL salary was $22,000 and the maximum was $52,500.

Rodman’s Salary Compared

Altogether, Rodman’s salary is both enormous and pitiful, depending on how you look at it.

First, let’s start with the good.

The Good: Rodman’s Salary vs U.S. Women’s Team Sports

When compared to other U.S. women’s teams sports, Rodman’s salary looks pretty good. Her new salary is larger than the maximum player salaries for the NWSL, the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF), and the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).

Maximum Salary History for U.S. Women’s Team Sports

Year	Rodman’s Base Salary	NWSL Player Maximum	PHF Player Maximum*	WNBA Player Maximum
2014	N/A	$31,500	N/A	$107,500
2015	N/A	$37,800	$26,000	$109,500
2016	N/A	$39,700	$13,000**	$111,500
2017	N/A	$41,700	$10,000	$113,500
2018	N/A	$44,000	N/A	$115,500
2019	N/A	$46,200	N/A	$117,500
2020	N/A	$50,000	$7,500	$215,000
2021	$42,000	$52,500	$15,000	$221,450
2022	$281,000	$75,000	$37,500	$228,094

1. Soccer: NWSL vs Rodman

As noted, Rodman is pulling in a staggering salary compared to other NWSL players. In fact, Rodman’s $1.1 million deal is the same amount as the salary cap for an entire 2022 NWSL team. Surprisingly, she is also earning more than some of the most well known soccer players in the world. U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) teammates Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe are reported to be making a base salary of $250,000.

NWSL Salary and Team Cap History

Year	Player Minimum	% Change	Player Maximum	% Change	Team Cap	% Change
2013	$6,000	N/A	$30,000	N/A	$200,000	N/A
2014	$6,600	10%	$31,500	5%	$265,000	33%
2015	$6,842	4%	$37,800	20%	$265,000	0%
2016	$7,200	5%	$39,700	5%	$278,000	5%
2017	$15,000	108%	$41,700	5%	$315,000	13%
2018	$15,750	5%	$44,000	6%	$350,000	11%
2019	$16,538	5%	$46,200	5%	$421,500	20%
2020	$20,000	21%	$50,000	8%	$650,000	54%
2021	$22,000	10%	$52,500	5%	$682,500	5%
2022	$35,000	59%	$75,000	43%	$1,100,000	61%

2. Hockey: PHF vs Rodman

To further Rodman’s dominance, she’s crushing the game compared to women’s professional hockey players in the U.S. As with many women’s leagues, women’s hockey struggles to pay their players a livable wage. This is true even with PHF’s announcement that they will be doubling the player’s salaries for the 2022 season. In the end, the highest average salary is still less than Rodman’s 2021 rookie salary.

PHF Salary and Team Cap History

Year	Avg. Player Minimum	% Change	Avg. Player Maximum	% Change	Team Cap	% Change
2015	$10,000	N/A	$26,000	N/A	$270,000	N/A
2016	$5,000*	-50%*	$13,000*	-50%*	$135,000*	-50%*
2017	$2,000	-60%	$10,000	-23%	$100,000	-26%
2018	$4,000	100%	N/A	N/A	$150,000	50%
2019	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
2020	$6,000**	N/A	$7,500**	N/A	$150,000	N/A
2021	$12,000**	100%	$15,000**	100%	$300,000	100%
2022	$30,000**	150%	$37,500**	150%	$750,000	150%

3. Basketball: WNBA vs Rodman

Much like the NWSL, Rodman fairs well when comparing her base salary to the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) too. Entering it’s 26th season, the WNBA is the longest running women’s professional league in the U.S. For this reason, the WNBA has been known to pay higher salaries for their athletes. Yet, despite a new WNBA collective bargaining agreement in 2020, Rodman now makes more than the WNBA’s salary maximum. This means Rodman is making more than Jewell Lloyd, Breanna Stewart, and the legendary Sue Bird.

WNBA Salary History

Year	Avg. Player Minimum	% Change	Avg. Player Maximum	% Change
2014	$38,150	N/A	$107,500	N/A
2015	$38,913	2%	$109,500	2%
2016	$39,676	2%	$111,500	2%
2017	$40,439	2%	$113,500	2%
2018	$41,202	2%	$115,500	2%
2019	$41,965	2%	$117,500	2%
2020	$57,000	36%	$215,000	83%
2021	$58,710	3%	$221,450	3%
2022	$60,471	3%	$228,094	3%

The Bad: Rodman’s Salary vs European Women’s Leagues

Unfortunately, it’s not all good news when it comes to Rodman’s salary. Specifically, there are other leagues outside of the U.S. that will pay their female soccer stars more. In fact, Sam Kerr, one of the sport’s biggest stars, left the NWSL for more money in 2020. She reportedly signed a 2.5 year deal with Chelsea, an English team, worth $410,000 per season. Another powerhouse, Ada Hegerberg, signed with Lyon, a French team, in 2018 for a reported $431,554 per season. All this is possible because European teams have no salary caps, which allows for much larger salaries for star players.

The Ugly: Rodman’s Salary vs Major League Soccer (MLS)

And this is where is gets really ugly! To put it bluntly, Rodman is getting paid pennies compared to her male counterparts in the MLS. Here are just a few highlights of how far apart the salaries really are:

• David Beckham’s guaranteed salary in 2007 was $6.5 million
• The average 2019 salary was $411,996
• Zlatan Ibrahimovic was the highest paid player in 2019 with $7.2 million in total annual compensation
• The 2021 base salary was $398,725
• Carlos Vela is currently the highest paid player with $6.3 million in total annual compensation

Obviously, this means that the highest paid NWSL salary doesn’t even come close to the salaries provided in the MLS.

The Sad: Rodman’s Salary vs the Average U.S. Personal Income

Regardless of how Rodman’s salary compares to that of an MLS player, most Americans shouldn’t feel too much pity for her. Rodman made $42,000 in 2021, which falls somewhere between the median and mean personal income of someone in the U.S. In addition, her salary in 2022 will be close to five times the average personal income.

Rodman can play 3-5 games and make more than the average American makes in a year.

History of Mean Personal Income in the U.S.

Year	Mean Personal Income	% Change	Median Personal Income	% Change
2019	$54,129	7%	$35,977	7%
2020	$53,996	0%	$35,805	0%
2021	$55,726*	3%	$36,891*	3%
2022	$57,511*	3%	$38,009*	3%

Rodman’s Worth to a Team and League

To recap, Rodman’s salary is both impressive and depressing, depending on how it’s being compared. Still, for those that follow the NWSL it is clear that she is special. She’s got the talent, the name, and the charisma. Ever since she burst onto the scene in 2021, she has shined.

Case in point, here are some of her accomplishments that emphasize the impact she’s had in one short year:

• Youngest player to be drafted into the NWSL at 18 years old
• Second overall pick in the 2021 NWSL draft with a three-year deal that averaged a base salary of $42,000 per year
• Youngest U.S. player to score in the NWSL on Apr 10, 2021 at 18 years old
• Named 2021 NWSL Rookie of the Year
• 2021 NWSL Champion with the Washington Spirit
• Named 2021 U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year
• Debuted for the USWNT on Feb 17, 2022 at 19 years old

As a result of all these accomplishments, Trinity Rodman’s salary appears to be in line with her performance. Her stats show that she’s a top caliber player and should be paid as such. Washington Spirit certainly sees the value that she brings to her team and are ‘putting their money where their mouth is.’*

In addition, while it’s important that the Spirit pay Rodman a competitive salary, it’s also crucial for the NWSL and the U.S. Ultimately, players will go where the money is. So, if players aren’t paid competitive wages then they will leave for other leagues that will pay them, just like Sam Kerr.

*’Putting money where your mouth is’ is an idiom that means someone doesn’t just talk about something, they follow through with action, and usually with money.

Where the Real Money Is

Whatever happens with Rodman’s salary, one thing is clear when it comes to women in sports: the money isn’t made on the field, it’s made through endorsements. This is evident Forbes’ 2021 list of highest paid female athletes. Below are the top paid U.S. athletes according to their list:

Interestingly, Forbes also noted that Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe just narrowly missed the top ten list of 2021’s highest paid females athletes in the world. As mentioned above, their base NWSL salaries are only $250,0000. Nevertheless, they earn millions more through endorsements and advertising.

It is only a matter of time before we see Trinity Rodman’s name on Forbes’ list of top 10 highest paid females too. Again, she has the talent, the name, the charisma, and the opportunity. In fact, if the USWNT and Washington Spirit continue their success, we could be seeing Rodman’s name on the list of highest paid female athletes by the next Women’s World Cup in 2023.