12 JUNE 12-18, 2025 westword.com WESTWORD | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | more in women’s sports, government in- vestment isn’t as sure. Denver City Council, for example, has been hesitant to devote public dollars to the NWSL project. Soon after the franchise was announced, the team proposed building a stadium at South Broadway and Interstate 25 on the former Gates Rubber site, which has sat dormant for decades. The team wants to work with a metro- politan district to access $70 million in city funds to buy the land for the future stadium, as well as build infrastructure in the surround- ing area. Though most councilmembers ap- proved the idea in theory, the funds have yet to be appropriated and the councilmembers want to see the team’s owners commit to cer- tain community benefi ts during the rezoning process this fall before handing over the cash. A few councilmembers expressed con- cern that there could be better ways to use that $70 million, and even worry that the team’s owners may not follow through with building the stadium, given the country’s uncertain economy. According to Millet, though, the stadium is essential to the team’s success. Bay FC shares a stadium with the MLS’s San Jose Earthquakes, and not being able to curate an end-to-end experience for fans is frustrating, she says. Parking cars, public transit connections, ushers, security and concessions are just some of the factors Denver NWSL could control by having their own stadium in- stead of leasing another facility. Additionally, scheduling games would be easier. “That’s really hard to navigate from the health and wellness of your players, the pitch quality and the fan experience,” Millet says. “The way we’re going to get to parity in women’s sports is this infrastructure investment.” Even if all goes well with Denver City Council, though, the stadium isn’t projected to be ready until 2028. In the meantime, the team is racing to construct a temporary stadium in Centennial by the start of the 2026 season. Denver NWSL is partnering with the Cherry Creek School District on the tem- porary stadium at the intersection of South Potomac Street and East Fremont Avenue across from the Denver Broncos training facility, splitting the estimated $20 to $25 million cost of the facility. Next to the temporary stadium will be a perma- nent performance center for team practice and training. The City of Centennial pur- chased the land in 2011 intending to fi nd a community use for the space, but nothing came together. For Cen- tennial Mayor Stephanie Piko, the soccer agreement was a no-brainer. Centennial doesn’t have a parks department, so it was logistically impossible for the city to operate a soccer facility or other public park in the space. Having the team and school district stepping in was a great solution, Piko says. Plus, the excitement around the NWSL team will bring excitement to Centennial. “There’s that intangible piece of good marketing,” she says. “It gives the nearby community a sense of pride. …It will bring an additional opportunity to the city of Centennial to focus that toward not just the I-25 corridor, where you see IKEA and where Lone Tree has Park Meadows, but now you’ve got a shift to the east and around Centennial airport that makes it something that is easily accessible for the community and then allows businesses to build around knowing that there will be traffi c and access into those areas.” According to Piko, Centennial actually reached out to the ownership group when city staffers heard about the possibility of bring- ing an NWSL team to Colorado, offering the land as a possibility for a stadium or training facility provided there could be a community element. Last summer, Centennial gave a tour of the space to the NWSL leadership team that was making the decision on where to award expansion franchises. The resulting agreement calls for the new, temporary stadium to seat 12,000 people for the 2026 and 2027 NWSL seasons, and then be scaled back to seat 4,000 people for school use; Cherry Creek plans to use the stadium for football games, graduations and other events. If the team’s permanent stadium isn’t ready by 2028 as planned, the parties can re-up their agreement for another year up to fi ve times. The training facility will be dedicated to women-fi rst design, Millet says. Unlike tradi- tional men’s facilities, a fresh build lets spaces be designed for a mix of genders in the coaching and training staff, as well, rather than assuming everyone in the locker room or training space will be a man. Teams in the NWSL are allowed to roster players who are under eighteen, so having spaces designed to give additional pri- vacy or provide tailored equipment for younger people is important, too, Millet adds. “We’re designing a facility that everyone can be their true selves in and get the services and functions that they need in the space,” she says. “It’s amazing, too, I would say, to have a facility that’s going to be shared by the larger community.” In the last few years, Millet has toured many training facilities, including the brand-new, state-of-the-art Phoenix Mercury facility, the third in the WNBA dedicated to just a women’s franchise. The other two are in cities that don’t have a men’s team: Las Vegas and Seattle. Millet jokes that the Mercury facility is so amazing even the Golden State Warriors would be jealous. More important, that level of design attracts players. “Beyond just the services that it affords the players, it signals to them that this is an ownership group that cares,” Millet says. The ownership group for the Denver fran- chise is large, starting with team governor Rob Cohen, CEO of IMA Financial Group and a longtime sports booster. Other own- ers include alternative governor Mellody Hobson, who also owns a share of the Denver Broncos, and Jason Wright, former Washing- ton Commanders president. There are other well-known names on the partnership team: Molly Coors, Mikaela Shiffrin and Peyton Manning, as well as For Denver FC Capital Partners and others. Denver’s NWSL team not be- ing owned by the same people as a men’s team, or any other team, is key, according to Millet, because the women’s team will always be the priority. The desire to build both a training facility and a stadium using mainly private dollars is evidence of that commitment. It will be a big push to have the stadium and grounds ready by 2026, but Piko says that her town is all-in on getting everything done. “We’ve got a great team in place at the city of Cen- tennial,” she says. “They are ready and able to get to it as a priority.” Centennial’s excitement is mir- rored by that of the team’s passion- ate fans, who have cheered on every step in the process, and are now waiting to learn the team name and logo. The six options listed on a survey that the team sent out for community feedback are Denver Peak FC, Colorado 14ers FC, Colorado Summit FC, Denver Elevate FC, Denver FC and Denver Gold FC. Denver councilmembers expect the word “Denver” to be in there if the city is going to give $70 million to the cause. “I’m really excited to see the brand and the reaction,” Angeli says.”I’ll probably cry, because that’s what I do. It’s been such a dream come true, all of these stages. With every next step, it’s just one more thing that feels like I can’t believe this is really happen- ing. Like, pinch me.” Angeli’s mood is mirrored by many, says Bushey, who jokes that fans here are as fi red up as those at a Champions League game — even though the Denver NWSL team has yet to sign a single player. He’d love to see Denver become Soccer Town USA, with the Rapids and college and high school teams joining with the NWSL team to all be successful, as happened with hockey in 2022, when East High School, the University of Denver and the Colorado Avalanche all won championships. But he cautions that the current energy could dissipate, so Bushey encourages fans to stay passionate. “These women will need their support,” Bushey says. “I believe this club, this team, can be the best in the world because it’s there to be had. …The club should be thinking, ‘We can not only be exciting for Denver, we can be exciting for our country. Therefore, we can be the best in our country. And if we can be the best in the USA, it means that we can be the best in the world.’ If the fan base did the same thing and really rallied around that, they, as much as the team, could be respon- sible for putting Denver on a world map.” Even if she doesn’t play with Denver NWSL, Nytes expects her CU coaches to help her realize her dreams of playing as a professional. “In the last year, it’s defi nitely come more to fruition for me that it’s actually going to happen,” Nytes says. “I get to stay here one more year and be an even better goalkeeper and hopefully learn a lot more, and then I know that that’s the path I’m taking. And it’s crazy.” Crazy in a good way. Email the author at [email protected]. The Ball’s in Her Court continued from page 10 DENVER NWSL DENVER NWSL Along with a stadium, the owners have a plan for a park and mixed-use buildings. A vision for what the Denver NWSL performance center could look like.
