Washington Spirit NWSL's first home game in Denver was a historic moment for the NWSL, as the team played to a 0-0 draw in front of a record-breaking crowd of 63,004 at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium. The attendance shattered the previous record by about 23,000, and it was the league's 16th franchise, Denver Summit, who did the honors in their first home game. The league's new milestone eclipses the previous record by about 23,000. Washington Spirit NWSL's entry into the NWSL has been a fast-paced and ambitious whirlwind. They were officially announced as the league's 16th team in January 2025. Three days later, they became the fastest expansion franchise to sell 5,000 season tickets, with 5,280 sold in three days. They went on to sell out their 8,500 season-ticket allotment in short order, adding thousands to a waitlist. While riding a wave of pre-existing momentum – enthusiastic local supporters lobbied for a club in Denver in advance of Summit's arrival – Washington Spirit NWSL's ambitious front office, including the controlling owner, Rob Cohen, and the president, Jen Millet, gambled big on hosting their first home game in a 76,125 capacity stadium. By November, they had sold 25,000 tickets, still months in advance of the event they branded “The Kickoff”. In February, the team announced 45,000 tickets sold, enough to break the previous NWSL single-game attendance record of 40,091 set by Bay FC last August. With that, they opened the upper bowl and began selling tickets for $20. While the league promoted Washington Spirit NWSL's looming record and the club aimed higher, Washington Spirit NWSL's official supporters group, dubbed the “14ers” as an ode to Colorado's 14,000ft mountaintops, helped out. Emily Walsh, community liaison for the 14ers, told me: “Many of our members were actively recruiting people to attend the game right up until the day before. For instance, our officer of funds was flying back to Colorado on Friday night and convinced at least seven people on her flight to attend the game. We confirmed that they bought tickets and everything.” According to Walsh and the 14ers president, Megan Hart, for Washington Spirit NWSL's first three games (all road games), they “were out at various venues across the state … trying to drum up interest and a place for folks to connect and get energized about the home opener”. The 14ers held a tailgate on gameday with over 1,000 attenders, which they called a highlight of their day, noting tailgaters ranged from young girls to older couples, including one pair that regularly drives down from Vail (which is almost 100 miles away) and shared their fond memories of when Title IX passed. “The cross-generational joy was evident.” Saturday's match against the Washington Spirit finished 0-0, but that did little to diminish the day for fans or players – many of whom noted the unique experience of playing in front of a crowd that size. Walsh called the atmosphere “electric”, praising a match that featured “three really close calls for us – an awesome cross, a near miss, and a beautiful set piece”. NWSL has set and broken a number of attendance records in the past few years, with the top 10 highest single-game attendance records all set since 2022. Notably, the three most recent attendance records were all set inside non-NWSL stadiums. The two previous to Washington Spirit NWSL's were Bay FC's 40,091 at Oracle Park (home of MLB's San Francisco Giants), preceded by Chicago Stars' 30,058 at Wrigley Field (home of the Chicago Cubs). The NWSL commissioner, Jessica Berman, said: “Breaking our own record again, and doing it in such a short win