📍 Commerce City, Colorado
⚽ Home of the Colorado Rapids

The Colorado Rapids – a founding member of Major League Soccer – have been a sports staple in the city of Denver since their inception in 1996, playing initially at old Mile High Stadium and later at Empower Field, the former and current homes of the NFL’s Denver Broncos. The club would later get a place to call their own, taking up residence at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, the 4th MLS soccer-specific stadium in the US. Located on the plains in the suburb of Commerce City and surrounded by the expansive Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge – where bison and elk roam freely – the stadium has been the dependable home of the Rapids for nearly twenty years.

Boasting a capacity of over 18,000 for soccer matches, DSG Park was inaugurated in 2007 with a 2-1 Rapids win over D.C. United. That same year, the venue took center stage as the host of the MLS All-Star Game, an event which would return to Commerce City in 2015. The stadium has also been the site of numerous international friendlies, as well as some rugby and lacrosse events.

DSG Park’s altitude at nearly a mile above sea level makes it the highest in Major League Soccer. Along with their regional foe Real Salt Lake – which plays at the second-highest MLS venue, America First Field – the Rapids compete annually for the Rocky Mountain Cup. The Cup, presented to the winning team at the end of each season, is a fan-awarded trophy that goes to the club with the most points in games played against each other.

Chiefly, however, the Rapids have their sights set on the ultimate prize: the MLS Cup. The side first competed in the 1997 title match, falling to D.C. United. In 2010, glory was restored to the Rapids as they defeated FC Dallas to clinch their first league championship.

Placards scattered across the concourse at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park tell the story of some of the Rapids’ most influential players. This Gallery of Honor was established well before the club moved to the suburbs, and features names like Marcelo Balboa, Drew Moor and Conor Casey.

A big part of the matchday atmosphere at DSG Park is the rabid Rapids supporter sections, formerly made up of three distinct groups. In 2013, these factions merged to form the Centennial 38, a play on Colorado’s admission to the Union in 1876 – America’s 100th birthday – as the 38th state.

Through ups and downs, both dedicated supporters and casual fans alike have never wavered in their loyalty to the Rapids. The club has remained a pillar of professional soccer – particularly in the sparse American west – and with a stalwart stadium to call home, Colorado will continue to entertain crowds at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park until the cows – er, bison – come home.