In their inaugural season, the Denver Summit is already making a mark on women’s sports, easily smashing the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) single-game attendance record during their home opener last Saturday.
Denver is one of two expansion franchises to enter the NWSL this year, along with the Boston Legacy, bringing the league team total to 16. The Summit kicked off its season playing its first three matches on the road, earning one win, one draw, and one defeat. After three games away and a first-ever victory over reigning champions Gotham FC, the Colorado club and the city of Denver were ready to welcome them.
When the team was asked how they felt heading into the game, coach Nike Cushing explained in a interview with CBS Sports, “God knows how many people are going to be a mile high. Last I heard was 50, then 60 (thousand). I mean, I think the whole state of Colorado has come into the game on Saturday.” 
Saturday morning was filled with excitement, a estimated number of 55,000 tickets were sold but that number turned out to be much greater. 63,004 fans showed up to cheer the team on. The previous record of 22,000 fans was nearly tripled.
When player Janine Sonis was asked about what this meant to her postgame, she explained, “I hope the record gets broken sooner rather than later,” she said in a postgame press conference. “That’s good for everyone. I think that if there’s a motto that should be branded across women’s sports, it’s: If you build it, they’ll come.” 
Considering the way things have gone the past few years in the NWSL, chances are Sonis’ hopes could be fulfilled soon. Since 2021, the league has added eight expansion teams, and the single-match attendance record has been broken three times in the last three years — each time involving an expansion team.
