The biggest game in Colorado soccer history?
There are a number of contests that could compete for the title, but the upcoming July 18 Denver Summit match is right up there.
The Summit may already hold the title from earlier this season when more than 63,000 were on hand for the inaugural game for the new NWSL team. That was a record crowd for a pro women's sporting event in the United States.
Next up? A new stadium, a new star player and a showdown with a Northern Colorado great.
Sophia Wilson against Lindsey Heaps
The Summit host the Portland Thorns at noon July 18 and it will be the debut for Heaps with the Summit.
Denver signed the Colorado native for its inaugural season, but she had to finish out her season with French club Lyon before hitting the pitch for the Summit.
She is now expected to make her Summit debut. Heaps is a midfielder who is considered one of the top women's soccer players in the world.
Heaps (formerly Horan) captained the United States to gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics and is a World Cup winner. The former U.S. Soccer Player of the Year is one of the most decorated players in the sport and her signing is a coup for the Summit both on and off the field.
Now? She'll face a longtime friend and teammate in Wilson.
Wilson (formerly Smith) is Northern Colorado's brightest soccer star and one of the best attacking players in the world. The forward scored three goals to help the Americans win that 2024 gold medal in Paris with Heaps.
The two played together on the Thorns after Wilson joined in 2020. Heaps was the 2018 NWSL MVP and Wilson won the 2022 MVP.
It's not truly a head-to-head matchup on the field because Heaps will lead the Summit midfield while Wilson leads the forward line for the Thorns, but it is a battle of two of the best in the world who are also from Colorado and playing in-state.
Wilson will surely have a strong family and friends contingent in the stands, while the debut of Heaps will be a huge draw.
Wilson missed last season on maternity leave and is now back and sits tied for fourth in the league in goals scored with six.
The Thorns are currently third in the NWSL and the Summit sit 11th.
Summit open new stadium
The Summit has lived a bit of a nomadic existence in its earliest days with the first home match for the franchise at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium and subsequent ones at Dick's Sporting Goods Park (home of the Rapids).
Now the Summit open Centennial Stadium, a 12,000-seat venue that will be home for the franchise for the rest of the 2026 season and 2027 while their permanent stadium is built. The stadium site is where the Summit's training center is.
National TV for Thorns vs Summit
The Thorns vs. Summit game will be broadcast nationally on CBS at noon Mountain Time on July 18.
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
Source: Coloradoan
