DENVER — The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) announced that Denver will soon be home to a women's professional soccer team, and there are plans to build a soccer stadium for the club.
The Denver NWSL will mark the first women's professional sports team in a major national league to call Denver home.
In mid-December, Sportico reported that the NWSL had entered negotiations with a group from Denver for an expansion franchise. At the time, a spokesperson for NWSL told Denver7 that "the expansion process is ongoing, and we look forward to sharing more news in 2025." A couple weeks later, in early January, Gov. Jared Polis posted on social media that "this isn’t an official announcement and a formal announcement is still coming" but he was excited about the prospect of bringing a women's soccer team to Denver.
That formal announcement came on Thursday morning.
Watch Denver7's coverage on Sportico's announcement below.
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said on Thursday that the city and surrounding area is home to some of the best players in the country — which include Denver-area Olympians Lindsey Horan, Mallory Swanson and Sophia Smith — but this marks the first time the city has had its own professional women's team.
He reflected on Thursday that he went to the USWNT game against South Korea at Dick's Sporting Goods Park with his daughter a little over a year ago. As they walked out of that game, he said he knew his daughter — and the other young women around him — had a renewed belief that they could also become not only a professional athlete, but also at the top of their game, a CEO, a commissioner and more.
"That is what inspires our girls, to believe that this town is theirs, the city is theirs, this country is theirs, and it's all open for them to dream and to achieve," Johnston said. "That's what we start today in Denver, and we can't wait to see the first kickoff. We can't wait to see the first championship. But most of all, we can't wait to see tens of thousands of girls and their parents and their family filing in and out of our purpose-built women's soccer facility where they can come celebrate the best as they dream to be the best. You made that happen in Denver, and we couldn't be more grateful.”
The NWSL press release also included news about "a purpose-built stadium for professional women’s soccer and a dedicated, purpose-built performance facility for female athletes." These details, as well as information about the team name and colors, will be released later.
Rob Cohen will serve as the club’s controlling owner, with Mellody Hobson as alternate governor.
“This has been a long time coming for a lot of us that have worked tirelessly on this, for not only just a couple years, but literally for decades," Cohen said during a press conference Thursday. "I'm so glad there's young people in the audience to watch this and tape this, and we're looking forward to having you play for our team... But I also think this is one of those destinations where it's alright if we pause as a community and we reflect and we step back and we look at it, we say, 'Look at what we did.' We are bringing a professional NWSL team to Denver, Colorado, and that's happened to be because all these people in this room in the community at large wanted it to happen.”
Denver NWSL Alternate Governor Mellody Hobson said at the same time as this "wonderful opportunity to be a significant investor," there has been a generational shift in women's sports.
"We're watching it in real time, and we have a front row seat for what is happening, and we want to be a part of elevating women to their rightful place in the pantheon of sports," she said. "And we know what that means also for all the girls and boys who watch these amazing athletes on the field. And what it will mean, not only for them… not only the fans, but also for our society.”
Tickets for the 2026 season are already available on the Denver NWSL website here.
Jessica Berman, commissioner of the NWSL, said as the group continues to expand, it wanted to launch the 16th team in a city with "passionate sports culture and vibrant fan base."
“And Denver is the perfect match,” she said. “The club’s plans for a purpose-built stadium and state-of-the-art training facility demonstrate a commitment to providing world-class environments for our players and fans alike. With this ownership group’s vision and dedication, we are confident that Denver NWSL will set new standards for excellence on and off the pitch, inspiring the next generation of players and supporters across the Rocky Mountain region.”
Part of the reason NWSL chose Denver was because of For Denver FC, which is a grassroots movement to bring a professional women's soccer team to Colorado.
The Denver NWSL marks the second franchise in NWSL's most recent expansion, which also included the 15th franchise in Boston. Denver beat out Cleveland and Cincinnati for the 16th team spot.
Denver NWSL will host a rally with its supporters at Number 38, located at 3560 Chestnut Place in Denver Thursday at 5 p.m. It is free to attend and open to all ages.
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