Denver’s National Women’s Soccer League franchise could be coming to the suburbs.
The club is proposing a partnership with Cherry Creek School District to build a training facility and stadium at the intersection of South Potomac Street and East Fremont Avenue in Centennial, .
The proposed stadium would have a temporary capacity of approximately 15,000 with about 4,000 permanent seats. The venue would be where the club plays while its permanent stadium at Santa Fe Yards is built over the next couple of years. The team plans to move into that stadium at I-25 and Broadway in 2028, but the to-be-named club begins NWSL play in 2026.
Denver NWSL’s proposal in Centennial includes two natural grass soccer fields and one artificial turf field next to the training facility, a complex of at least four additional artificial turf soccer fields, the stadium and parking. CCSD will get to use those fields at no cost as part of the partnership.
Part of the district’s motivation to enter into this partnership is adding additional fields, which is deemed a need for CCSD and its communities. The project’s memorandum of understanding also projects that the training facility “will create a mecca for women’s, youth, and amateur sports” in the community.
The stadium and its auxiliary fields will be on about 31 acres on an undeveloped parcel near the Broncos’ training facility, according to the memorandum of understanding. CCSD will escrow $15 million for the development of the fields and corresponding infrastructure, which the club will draw down to pay for design, construction, and other development costs for those fields.
The team’s headquarters, which will be located on an adjacent piece of land, will also be built at this Centennial location. The headquarters will be funded by the club.
To finance the stadium, CCSD and the club will split the cost, which is estimated to be between $20 million and $25 million. CCSD will have the right to share in revenue from naming rights for the facility. And as part of the deal, the club will make a $100,000 donation to the Cherry Creek Schools Foundation “or another entity designated by the District.”
The district and the club will enter into an initial 20-year lease for the auxiliary fields, and an initial two-year term for the stadium. The club can extend that term for up to five additional one-year periods. The club will operate and maintain the stadium at its expense and will retain all revenue from NWSL matches and other events at the stadium, while the district will retain all revenue from district events there.
The proposal is the latest in the series of big moves by Rob Cohen, the club’s controlling owner and governor, and his ownership group. Cohen & Co. ponied up a women’s professional sports record $110 expansion fee to join the NWSL, and their plans for the 14,500-seat stadium at Santa Fee Yards would be the state’s first venue built specifically for women’s professional sports.
The club declined to comment on the proposed partnership. An official announcement is expected on Thursday.
