Lindsey Heaps is going back home.
The United States women’s national team captain will return to the NWSL this June, joining expansion side Denver Summit FC once her contract with French club OL Lyonnes expires. Heaps has signed a deal that runs through the 2029 NWSL season, giving Denver one of the most high-profile signings in league history as the club prepares for its inaugural year.
A native of Golden, Colorado, Heaps has long been linked with the possibility of playing professionally in her home state. Even so, she said the decision to join Summit FC was not driven purely by sentiment.
“I didn’t want just to say, ‘I want to do it because it’s Denver,’” Heaps told ESPN. “I wanted it to be the right place for me and my career.”
Denver was confirmed as the NWSL’s 16th team in January 2025, and speculation quickly followed about whether the USWNT captain would eventually return. Heaps admitted she was unsure the timing would align while she remained at the top level of the European game.
“The more I thought about it, the more it became real,” she said.
A career shaped by early decisions
Heaps, who turns 32 in May, has built one of the most decorated careers in women’s football. At 18, she became the first American woman to turn professional straight out of high school when she signed with Paris Saint-Germain in 2012, opting to move abroad rather than attend college.
After four seasons in France, she returned to the United States in 2016 at the request of U.S. Soccer, joining the Portland Thorns. There, Heaps won two NWSL Shields, the 2017 NWSL Championship, and the league’s Most Valuable Player award in 2018.
She returned to France in 2022, first on loan and later permanently to Lyonnes. During her time with the club, Heaps helped secure three consecutive league titles and the UEFA Women’s Champions League in 2022, the club’s record eighth European crown. She scored 22 goals in 95 appearances in all competitions.
On the international stage, Heaps has been a regular presence since the 2016 Rio Olympics. She has earned 170 caps, captained the side since 2023, won the 2019 Women’s World Cup, and added Olympic gold at the 2024 Paris Games.
A defining signing for Denver
For Denver Summit FC, Heaps’ arrival represents a statement of ambition. The club will begin its first season in March and has made clear its intention to compete immediately.
General manager Curt Johnson, formerly of the North Carolina Courage, said signing elite players with ties to Colorado was a priority from the outset.
“We felt Lindsey was the ideal piece as we build a strong team and establish the DNA of Denver and Colorado,” Johnson said. “This is a message to fans, players, and the wider football world that this will be a formidable club.”
Johnson described Heaps as a midfielder who controls matches through tempo, leadership, and consistency, impacting both attacking and defensive phases of the game.
Denver has already assembled a strong core ahead of its debut campaign, including Ally Watt, Carson Pickett, Kaleigh Kurtz, and defender Ayo Oke. The appointment of head coach Nick Cushing, formerly of Manchester City Women and NYCFC, also played a role in Heaps’ decision.
“I wanted to work with a top coach,” Heaps said. “Hearing Nick explain how he sees football was a huge deciding factor.”
The club is also planning long-term investment off the pitch, including a purpose-built stadium scheduled to open in 2028, which would become only the second stadium explicitly designed for an NWSL team.
A timely return for the NWSL
Heaps’ move comes at a moment when the NWSL is under pressure to retain leading American players. Over the past year, several high-profile internationals have moved to Europe, including Naomi Girma and Alyssa Thompson to Chelsea. Sam Coffey is expected to join Manchester City, while Trinity Rodman continues to attract interest from overseas clubs.
In response, the league introduced the High Impact Player rule, allowing teams to exceed the salary cap by up to one million dollars to recruit and retain elite talent. Heaps qualifies under the criteria and could become the league’s first High Impact Player, although the mechanism remains under discussion between the league and the players’ union.
Any uncertainty around the rule does not affect Heaps’ contract. Denver also benefits from expansion allocation funds through 2027, providing additional flexibility under the salary cap.
Heaps said she is returning to a league that has evolved significantly since her previous spell.
“There is much more investment now,” she said.
Returning on her own terms
Despite her global success, Heaps said the most challenging part of the process was keeping the news from her parents, who have spent much of her career watching from afar.
“They may see me two or three times a year,” she said.
She waited months before telling them, eventually revealing the news during a visit home around Christmas. The reality of playing professionally in Colorado, she said, may not fully register until she drives to training or steps onto the pitch wearing a Denver shirt for the first time.
“I could be super emotional,” Heaps said. “Most likely, because I’m a sensitive person.”
After more than a decade playing across Europe and the United States, Lindsey Heaps is going back home, ready to lead a new club and help shape the next chapter of the NWSL.
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