Denver Summit FC will have to wait a bit longer for a permanent home. The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) expansion club confirmed its new stadium at Santa Fe Yards won't be ready for the start of the 2028 season.
Delays in acquiring the land pushed the timeline back. The 14,500-seat venue was expected to open in spring 2028. Instead, the club hopes to host at least some of its home games there later that year.
Even so, the project marks a major milestone for women's soccer. Once complete, it will be just the second purpose-built stadium in the NWSL. The Kansas City Current opened their own 11,500-seat venue in 2024 and sold out every home match that season.
Meanwhile, Denver's city council already approved up to $70 million for land acquisition and infrastructure at the site. Architecture firm Populous is leading the stadium's design.
Interim Venue Anchors Denver Summit's NWSL Schedule
For now, the club will continue playing at its temporary 12,000-seat stadium in Centennial, Colorado. That venue will host matches through 2027 before the team moves to its new Denver home.
The setback won't affect the broader NWSL schedule, but it does push back one of the league's most anticipated openings.
Oklahoma City solidified its status as the "Softball Capital of the World" this week, when the city council unanimously approved a $25.4 million indoor facility at Devon Park.
The Oklahoma City softball complex breaks ground this summer, with completion scheduled for late 2027 ahead of the Women's College World Series and the 2028 Olympic softball tournament.
Oklahoma City-based STUDIO Architecture designed the two-story facility, which will sit on a parking lot west of Devon Park. The structure will be built into a hill on the west side of the property.
The indoor complex features two practice fields divided by a partition where teams can warm up before games. Each practice area includes a full infield with drop-down nets creating three batting cages and two pitching lanes.
First-floor amenities include two 800-square-foot locker rooms with 25 lockers each, plus restroom facilities with showers. Teams also get nutrition bars, an equipment room with laundry facilities, a 367-square-foot training room with six training tables, and an 806-square-foot weight room connected to a hydrotherapy room with four ice tubs.
The second floor houses a team meeting room with three rows of variable-height tables, a media room, administrative offices, and a central lobby.
A climate-controlled walkway will connect the practice facility to Devon Park stadium. The building additionally includes a secured, private entrance for softball teams.
Funding comes largely from a voter-approved bond, with the city receiving a final report from STUDIO Architecture in the coming weeks.
Devon Park currently hosts the NCAA Women's College World Series, the AUSL's Oklahoma City Spark, and USA Softball's Olympic trials.
Brighton announced plans to build England's first purpose-built women's football stadium, a £75 million to £80 million project projected to open by the 2030/31 WSL season.
The Brighton women's stadium will sit on Bennett's Field, directly next to the men's team's Amex Stadium. The venue will hold a minimum capacity of 10,000, while connecting to the Amex via a bridge walkway.
Chairman Tony Bloom is funding the project, though the club remains open to government contributions. Brighton is targeting a 2030/31 WSL season opening, pending approval.
The facility becomes just the third purpose-built women's stadium globally, following the NWSL's Kansas City and Braga's Amélia Morais Stadium in Portugal. No English has a newly built dedicated women's football stadium, while teams like Chelsea and Arsenal opted to move games to their men's stadiums.
Brighton designed every aspect through a women's football lens — from pitch surfaces that could prevent certain injuries to dressing room configurations and family-friendly amenities. The club currently draws 2,000 to 3,000 fans per match.
"It will help us push forward our ambitions to compete consistently both domestically in the Women's Super League and also in European club competition, while helping us to attract key staff and grow a passionate fan base," managing director Zoe Johnson said in a team statement.
Former Chelsea and current Brighton star Fran Kirby called the stadium a "big attraction" for retaining and recruiting elite talent.
"We strongly believe it will strengthen our ability to attract elite talent, help develop our younger players for the future, support the growth of our fan base and create a genuine sense of belonging around the women's game," Brighton chairman Tony Bloom said.
The club plans to still shift bigger matchups to the 33,000-capacity Amex, while also building long-term fan engagement at its dedicated women's venue.
The Denver Summit is eyeing the future, acquiring land at Santa Fe Yards for a new NWSL stadium in the Mile High City.
Summit controlling owner Rob Cohen called the move a milestone for the club and city.
“This is a defining moment for Denver Summit FC and for the future of women’s professional sports in our city,” Cohen said.
“We are incredibly grateful to Mayor Mike Johnston, Denver City Council, and the broader Denver community for helping turn this vision into a reality.”
Located near Interstate 25, the 2026 expansion side’s purpose-built venue is part of a broader redevelopment project. Additional entertainment venues will subsequently surround the roughly 14,500-seat stadium.
“This will be the largest overall investment in a women’s professional sports team in history,” Cohen said in an earlier team release. “[It will] provide us a distinct home-field advantage and will serve as the most inclusive environment in all of Colorado.”
The blueprints incorporate the ability to expand beyond the stadium’s initial 14,500 seats. The team has additionally voiced interest in eventually extending the capacity closer to 20,000.
The move comes after Denver set an NWSL attendance record, drawing 63,004 fans to its Mile High Stadium home opener.
The Summit joined the US soccer league as its 16th franchise earlier this month. The team currently sits eighth in the NWSL standings, carrying a 1-1-2 early season record.
While construction timelines remain in progress, the club will use temporary venues before transitioning to a permanent home. Development is expected to unfold over the next few years, with the club targeting a 2028 opening.
The Chicago Stars are still looking for a permanent home, as the NWSL club put its plan to move to Northwestern University's new Ryan Field on ice this week following local pushback.
"Our goal has always been one of unity — galvanizing the Evanston community in support of the club, our athletes, and the advancement of equity for women's sports," the team said in a Wednesday statement.
"We believe that this is what Evanston residents seek as well, but have also heard a call for more dialogue and understanding about who we are and the impact our presence will have on the community," the statement continued.
The Stars relocated from the club's previous Bridgeview home at SeatGeek Stadium to Northwestern's temporary Martin Stadium ahead of the 2026 NWSL season, but recently applied for a permit to relocate 15 to 17 future games to Ryan Field starting in 2027.
However, the team faced opposition from area politicians and resident advocacy groups voicing concerns about the new stadium hosting any non-Northwestern programming.
How to watch the Chicago Stars this weekend
The Stars will welcome fans to Martin Stadium for the first time this season in their 2026 home opener on Sunday, when Chicago faces the Kansas City Current at 2:15 PM ET.
The match will air live on ESPN2.
The Chicago Stars are moving out of Bridgeview, the NWSL club announced on Wednesday, signing a one-year deal to play at Northwestern University's Martin Stadium on the shore of Lake Michigan for the 2026 season.
Currently home to the Big Ten school's lacrosse and football teams, the open-air, turf-field stadium in Evanston accommodates 12,000 fans — a steep drop from the 20,000-seat capacity SeatGeek Stadium where the Stars have competed for the last 10 years, often struggling to fill the stands.
"What began as a temporary lakefront home for Northwestern football has quickly become a unique venue that has welcomed collegiate, professional, and international competition," said Northwestern director of athletics Mark Jackson in a club statement.
The Stars have never had a full-time home inside Chicago's city limits, making their 2011 debut at Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois, before moving to Bridgeview ahead of the 2016 season.
Stars fans will have a sneak peek of what it's like to attend an NWSL game at the team's 2026 digs this Sunday, when a surging Chicago side will host the reigning champion Orlando Pride in a pre-announced match at Martin Stadium.
"This is just one step in a series of changes, including the recent hiring of renowned head coach Martin Sjögren,... [to] set the club on a new trajectory," noted Chicago Stars president Karen Leetzow.
The Tampa Bay Sun became the latest team to announce plans for a purpose-built women's soccer stadium this week, with the 2025 USL Super League champs looking to construct a 15,000-seat venue on the Ybor Harbor waterfront.
"We believe in the power of sport to inspire, unite, and drive meaningful change," said Sun majority owner Darryl Shaw in the club's Tuesday announcement. "By anchoring this historic neighborhood with a vibrant home for women's professional soccer, we're investing in our city's future and honoring the community that makes it thrive."
The state-of-the-art stadium for the top-flight USL club is the star of the proposal, though the 33-acre mixed-use development project also incorporates retail and residential spaces, as well as hotels, restaurants, and offices to house the United Soccer League headquarters.
While the new development has yet to announce a construction timeline or overall cost, the project comes as the USL Super League moves into its second season following a successful inaugural year.
"We're accelerating the growth of women's soccer while creating lasting benefits for Tampa Bay," said USL CEO Alec Papadakis. "The stadium development will be a place where fans and community come together and celebrate our sport."
"Tampa is a city of champions — and now we're dreaming even bigger," remarked Tampa mayor Jane Castor. "The stadium would deliver a place that captures our city's energy, inspires the next generation, and stands as a national symbol of what happens when cities invest boldly in women's sports and inclusive economic growth."
Less than two months after winning the bid to become the 16th NWSL team, 2026 expansion franchise Denver has already sold over 10,000 season ticket deposits, setting a new league record.
This week's sales record comes after Denver became the fastest expansion franchise in NWSL history to surpass 5,000 season ticket deposits, with 5,280 snapped up in the first three days following the league awarding a team to the Mile High City.
"This milestone showcases that our community is passionate about women’s professional soccer and what we are building in Denver and across the front range," said the club's controlling owner Rob Cohen in a statement on Monday.
Denver continues plans for top-tier facilities
The incoming NWSL club has been busy outside the box office, too, as Denver dropped plans for a new 14,500-seat, purpose-built stadium last month.
With the team's permanent competition digs aiming to open for the 2028 season, the club is also constructing both a purpose-built, 12,000-seat temporary stadium for the squad's 2026 and 2027 season.
That stadium, as well as the team's permanent state-of-the-art training and performance facility, will be located approximately 14 miles southeast of Denver in nearby Centennial, Colorado.
"There is still a great deal of work to be done," said Cohen. "We are excited to continue collaborating with our community to create a club that is representative and inclusive of all of Colorado."
How to secure NWSL Denver season tickets
With inventory flying off of Denver's proverbial shelves, those interested in snagging season tickets to the NWSL's 16th franchise can do so by submitting a deposit online.