Denver Summit FC’s new permanent stadium near downtown will not be ready for the start of the 2028 NWSL season as originally planned.
A team spokesperson confirmed to ESPN that construction schedules are being finalized, and the team hopes to play some of its 2028 home games at the new venue in Santa Fe Yards, just south of downtown Denver.
The 2026 NWSL expansion team originally planned to have its new stadium in place for the start of the 2028 season, but delays in acquiring the land have pushed that timeline back to at least later that year.
The Denver Business Journal first reported the news.
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Denver Summit FC plans to build a 14,500-seat stadium on the Santa Fe Yards plot of land in Denver that has long sat dormant. The stadium would also have room for expansion for future large events.
It would only be the second stadium in the league built exclusively for an NWSL team. The Kansas City Current opened their own 11,500-seat stadium in 2024 and have sold out every match. They recently announced plans to expand that to 18,000 seats.
In the interim, the Summit will play home games at Centennial Stadium in Centennial, Colorado, about 15 miles south of Denver. The team opened the 12,000-seat temporary stadium on Saturday in front of a sellout crowd. Denver defeated the Portland Thorns, 2-1.
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Summit FC plans to play at Centennial until the completion of its permanent stadium. Centennial Stadium would then be scaled down and handed over to the local school district. The stadium sits adjacent to the NWSL team’s newly constructed training facility.
Denver joined the NWSL alongside Boston Legacy FC this year to bring the league to 16 teams.
Boston faced significant challenges with its long-term stadium and instead split time this year between Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and a new soccer stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
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Boston’s long-term home, White Stadium, is expected to open at some point next year, about a year behind schedule.
Denver set an NWSL attendance record in its first home game in March, drawing 63,004 fans to Mile High, where the NFL’s Denver Broncos play.
Denver played four games at DICK’s Sporting Goods Park, home of MLS‘ Colorado Rapids — two more than originally planned after Centennial Stadium faced construction delays.
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“I think the key, when we think about building infrastructure, is ensuring that there’s an alternative, interim solution that can meet the standards of the league,” NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman told ESPN in March in her new office in New York City. “Because when you’re building purpose-built infrastructure — particularly things like a stadium as opposed to a training facility — it is going to be hard. And I think the Boston Legacy, they have navigated a lot of challenges really effectively.”
Summit FC president Jen Millet told ESPN in March that the team had to stop selling season tickets at 8,200 to allow for single-game sales. As of late March, there was a 7,500-person waiting list for season tickets.
“Trying to do what we’ve done in 15 months is almost impossible for a team to do, to be honest,” Summit FC owner Rob Cohen said ahead of Denver’s home opener. “I tell people: 15 months ago, we didn’t have a single staff member, we didn’t have designs on our performance center, we didn’t have a single player, we didn’t have a coaching staff. To be at this point 15 months later … is a little hard to even comprehend.”
