A UEFA Women’s Champions League superstar and U.S. women’s national team captain returns home. Denver Summit FC announced the signing of Colorado native Lindsey Heaps on Monday. The midfielder will join Summit FC following the conclusion of her 2025-26 campaign with OL Lyonnes.
The U.S. midfielder has 170 appearances with the USWNT, is a 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, 2024 Olympic gold, and 2020 Olympic bronze medalist. She has aided the national team in winning multiple Concacaf trophies, won the U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year in 2021, and was named to he Best FIFA Women’s XI in 2024.
“I’m incredibly excited to come home to Colorado and join Denver Summit FC,” Heaps said. “This club represents something special, not just for the league, but for this community and for the next generation of players growing up here. I’m fully committed to finishing the season strong with Lyon, and I can’t wait to begin this next chapter in Denver this summer.”
A double homecoming
Heaps, born in Golden, Colorado, will have a double homecoming of sorts when she returns in the summer — first to her home state as a product of Colorado’s youth system, and also back to the NWSL.
“Signing Lindsey Heaps is a defining moment for Denver Summit FC,” said Denver Summit FC General Manager Curt Johnson. “She represents the very highest level of excellence as a player, a leader, and a professional. To welcome her back home to Colorado and to have her help shape the identity of this club is incredibly meaningful.”
The 31-year-old midfielder made headlines as a teenager when she turned down her University of North Carolina scholarship to turn pro and start her club career with Paris Saint-Germain in 2012. Following a four-year stint in France, she signed with Portland Thorns FC in 2016 and won several accolades in nearly every season with the club, including the NWSL Shield (2016, 2021), NWSL Championship (2017), NWSL Challenge Cup (2021), and NWSL MVP (2018) before her departure in 2022 to OL Lyonnes.
“Lindsey will bring a world-class level to our team and represents the ambition of this club on-and-off the field,” said Summit FC Head Coach Nick Cushing. “Lindsey has won at every level of the game. Her leadership, talent, and professionalism will continue to raise the standard for Summit FC when she arrives this summer. We are thrilled to welcome a hometown player back to Denver as we work to win championships and grow our club and community.”
Is Lindsey Heaps the first high-impact player signing?
Last month, the league board of governors voted to implement a new mechanism to sign and pay players without affecting the salary cap, called the High-Impact Player rule. It’s a new method derived from the ongoing contract saga between U.S. women’s national team winger Trinity Rodman and the NWSL.
The new rules allow teams to spend an additional $1 million on players who meet specific “star” criteria. The ability to offer competitive salaries in a global transfer market rises remains a hurdle for the women’s leagues around the world, though the NWSL specifically has seen an increase in players leaving for teams overseas.
NWSL clubs will be able to exceed the league’s current salary cap by $1 million and use the HIP funds toward single or multiple player contracts. The HIP threshold will also increase annually alongside the salary cap, which is currently $3.5 million and set to rise to $5.1 million by 2030.
The HIP rule will be effective as of July 1, but teams and clubs can immediately use the mechanism to sign high-profile athletes as long as contract structures are reflective of the new policy start date. No club has utilized the rule at this time, including Denver, though that could change according to Summit FC general manager Curt Johnson.
“As it relates to our desire to sign Lindsay, this was something that certainly predated the HIP rule,” Johnson told media.”So, our intention was to sign Lindsay, then the hip rule came along. We’ll certainly work with the league to apply it in the best way we can that will positively impact our salary cap and our roster building.”
Denver’s roster is still growing and is far from the 40-player preseason roster deadline due on Wednesday. With Heaps set to join the team during the summer, the club will continue to utilize opportunities to acquire players ahead of their inaugural season.
“When a player is assigned the HIP category, the salary cap charge is in the salary cap, and then there’s a pool of money outside the salary cap, is how it works,” Johnson said. “But we’re moving forward with the assumption that this will fall in the HIP category, and hopefully we’re moving on to finding our next player that fits that category,” he said.
When will Lindsey Heaps debut for Denver?
The midfielder is to join Summit FC following completion of her season with OL Lyonnes, and the NWSL’s newest expansion franchise expects the midfielder’s arrival in June. She’s currently competing with the French side domestically and in the 2025-26 UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Heaps has already been part of several trophies with the European giants during her time with the club. She’s won three Division 1 Féminine titles, a UWCL title, and the Coupe de France Féminine. Her signing is considered a high-profile addition to Denver’s expansion roster building.
While the club expects her arrival in June, when she makes her first appearance as a member of Summit FC is another thing entirely. The league has already announced that it will take a summer break during the men’s 2026 FIFA World Cup from June 1 through 28. The month-long pause means regular-season games will likely resume the first weekend of July.
When will Denver Summit play its first home game?
The complete NWSL schedule is set for release at a later date, but the league unveiled a blueprint with key dates.
Officially NWSL’s 16th franchise, the Denver Summit will play its first game on Saturday, March 28. Billed as “The Kickoff,” the club will take the pitch at NFL stadium, Empower Field at Mile High, in Denver. The marquee event is scheduled to be televised on CBS, with the opponent to be announced during the official regular-season schedule announcement.
What’s next
The club continues to build its roster ahead of the 2026 NWSL regular season. While Lindsey Heaps’ arrival won’t impact the team till the second half of the year, there are still plenty of league-experienced players already on part of Denver’s inaugural roster. The club signed free agents Ally Watt and Kaleigh Kurtz, and recently acquired Canadian international Janine Sonis.
