\n
Lindsey Heaps is back.<\/p>\n
The Women’s World Cup winner will take part in the National Women’s Soccer League expansion competition Denver Summit this summer after her contract with French club Lyon expires.<\/p>\n
Heaps is a Golden, Colorado native who made no secret of his interest in playing in his home state after the Summit. Announced as the 16th team in the league<\/span> Back in January 2025. The club is celebrating its first season this year.<\/p>\n“When I first heard about this team, it was surreal. I couldn’t believe Denver was going to have a professional women’s soccer team,” Heaps said in an interview with The Associated Press. “I didn’t want to get too excited at the beginning because I didn’t know if it was really possible for me. And as the conversation progressed, the first thing I said was I wanted to make sure it was the right opportunity for me.”<\/p>\n
Not only does Heaps have family in Colorado, but her husband, Tyler Heaps, is general manager and athletic director for Major League Soccer’s San Diego FC, and the two juggle the demands of a transatlantic relationship.<\/p>\n
Heaps also indicated that he was invited to the summit by major shareholder Rob Cohen. coach nick cushing,<\/span> He previously coached the Manchester City women’s team and Major League Soccer’s NYCFC.<\/p>\n\u201cI think they align with all of my beliefs in how they view the team, how they view the team to be successful and the investments they\u2019re putting in,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd hearing about Nick and his philosophy on football, I think that was a big deciding factor for me and I wanted to be with a good coach, so I was really excited.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denver is assembling its roster for the first season, bringing in former Orlando Pride players Allie Watt and Carson Pickett and North Carolina Courage forward Kaylee Kurtz. Most recently, the team signed defender Ayo Oke from Mexican club Pachuca.<\/p>\n
Heaps, 31, is known as an aggressive facilitator on the field, and his 5-foot-9 height gives him an advantage in the air. She will no doubt take on a leadership role in Denver, similar to that of a national team captain.<\/p>\n
She said: “I want to foster the chemistry, values \u200b\u200band standards that I want this club to continue for many years to come, to be a place where we entertain our fans, play good football, succeed and where everyone wants to play.”<\/p>\n
After high school, Heaps turned down a scholarship to North Carolina State and instead went overseas, playing four seasons for Paris Saint-Germain.<\/p>\n
Competing for a spot on the Olympic team in 2016, she returned to the United States to play for the Portland Thorns, winning the NWSL title in 2017 and being named the league’s Most Valuable Player in 2018.<\/p>\n
The Thorns loaned her to Lyon in 2022 before granting her a permanent move to the French First Division team. Heaps made 95 appearances for Lyon, scoring 22 goals.<\/p>\n
Heaps has been a regular on the U.S. national team since the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, and has been captain since 2023.<\/p>\n
At the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France, she provided the assist for Alex Morgan’s go-ahead goal in the semi-final against England. In addition to the World Cup trophy, Heaps also has Gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.<\/span><\/p>\nHeaps returns home while other national team stars have left for Europe over the past year, including defenders Naomi Girma and Alyssa Thompson.<\/p>\n
Heaps believes her time spent overseas has made her a more complete player.<\/p>\n
“The reason I quit at the time was because I wanted to experience something different. I wanted to challenge myself in a different way,” she said. “I’m not denying what Portland has given me or what the NWSL has given me, but I’ve been there for six years and I wanted to try again. I’d be remiss if I didn’t go to France one more time and try to challenge myself in a different way.”<\/p>\n
___<\/p>\n
AP Soccer: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/soccer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lindsey Heaps is back. The Women’s World Cup winner will take part in the National Women’s Soccer League expansion competition Denver Summit this summer after her contract with French club Lyon expires. Heaps is a Golden, Colorado native who made no secret of his interest in playing in his home state after the Summit. Announced<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20089,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-20088","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer"},"yoast_head":"\n
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