Denver officially awarded 2026 NWSL expansion team: What you need to know

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A group from Denver has officially been awarded a 2026 National Women’s Soccer League expansion team, joining Boston for next year and bringing the NWSL to 16 total teams beginning next season.

What do we know so far about the Denver franchise? EQZ’s Dan Lauletta spoke with controlling owner Rob Cohen to get the scoop. Below is a summary of key talking points around the team, with additional quotes from NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman.

Where will they play?

We asked Cohen this, and he said he should be able to answer that publicly soon. The plan is to build a stadium for the team, much like the Kansas City Current have done. Denver will play at a temporary venue upon the team’s launch, however, with details to come soon.

Sources have indicated to EQZ throughout the expansion process that the team is unlikely to play at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, home of MLS’ Colorado Rapids. Cohen’s comments to national media about the stadium location — both the temporary and permanent solutions — further suggest that and help narrow down the location.

“I think when people see it, they’ll understand the vision and the strategy behind the bid and what we’re trying to do and the legacy we’re trying to create around building a world-class training facility designed for and built for women,” Cohen said. “And that would be the state of the art facility supplemented with a temporary stadium that will allow us to play games in a dedicated place, again for women. And then obviously the permanent stadium, in a world-class stadium, where we built it and designed it, and it’s dedicated for women [to] play.

“It will be — I think it’s safe to say at this point, even though I can’t talk about the locations specifically — it will be in a central location related to mass transit, and that will create a great connectivity for everybody in the Front Range.”

What’s the team’s name?

Branding is yet to be announced, but it’s safe to assume that the dark green that the team is using everywhere in its rollout is going to feature prominently. That would mean that after 12 years without a team using green as a primary color, the NWSL would be adding two green-based teams in the same year. Boston’s colors are predominantly green and black, although Boston’s is a lighter, Kelly green.

Why did the NWSL choose Denver?

Denver was a finalist for this expansion slot, alongside Cincinnati and Cleveland. The NWSL chose Denver in December for a multitude of reasons, including the ownership group and its ambitious plans.

Both Cohen and Berman pointed out on Thursday that Denver was one of the biggest metro area in the United States without a professional women’s sports team.

Berman lauded Cohen and the ownership group, as well as their plans to build facilities. She also praised the Denver market on several levels, including its geographic place on the map as it relates to time zones (Utah is the only other Mountain Time market in the NWSL) and its accessibility for the rest of the teams in the league (Denver is the third busiest airport in the U.S. and sixth busiest in the world).

“In this case, for where we are in our in our growth from expansion perspective, it was a really important factor actually talk about from the lens of travel and convenience,” Berman said about Denver’s airport infrastructure. “In terms of knowing, understanding the player load that these professional athletes undertake week over week, knowing that our goal is to be the best league in the world and to attract the best players in the world, and that our competitor leagues who operate domestically in their countries are the size of a state in the U.S. And so the more we can make decisions that help to mitigate the toll that travel takes on professional athletes, the better it will be for us achieving our long-term objectives.”

Who is Rob Cohen?

Cohen is the Chairman and CEO of IMA Financial Group, Inc., a top 25 insurance brokerage specializing in risk management, insurance, wholesale brokerage and wealth management headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

More relevant to the NWSL business piece is his involvement in Denver sports for the past three decades.

In 2001, Cohen founded the Denver Sports Commission, whose mission is to bring major events and competitions to the area. That has included the All-Star Games of MLB, NBA, NHL, Women’s Final Four and Hockey Frozen Four.

Cohen was on the Salt Lake City Bid committee, which was awarded the Winter Olympic Games for 2034. Cohen was appointed by Congress to the Commission on the State of the U.S. Olympics and Paralympic movement.

Who will coach, play for Denver?

The search for a technical staff, starting with general manager (or sporting director or the equivalent) begins now, Cohen said. The timeline is tight to hire that role and everyone else under it, but it is doable. (Angel City FC, as one example, still doesn’t have a head coach and only just hired a sporting director, and preseason is already underway.)

Several prominent NWSL players have Colorado roots, including Olympic gold medal winners Sophia Smith, Mallory Swanson and Lindsey Horan. There will be plenty of speculation about whether they could join the Denver expansion side — and the team’s marketing video prominently featuring highlights of all three won’t cool that chatter.

Notably, Smith’s contract with the Thorns is up at the end of the year, although there is a 2026 option.

Cohen confirmed to The Equalizer that the team can begin signing and loaning players.