Denver Summit hires Nick Cushing as manager: ‘I want to embrace' NWSL expansion challenge

New York Times

06-08-2025

Denver Summit FC, the NWSL expansion team that will begin play next year, has hired Nick Cushing as its first head coach, the club announced Wednesday.
Cushing, the former head coach of Manchester City Women and MLS's New York City FC, spent 15 years across City Football Group. He first joined the organization as an academy coach, before transitioning to the women's team. Now, he'll be tasked with building NWSL's newest club from scratch.
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'I've been really, really fortunate to be developed in an established organization like CFG,' Cushing told The Athletic. 'So, to now play my role in developing a team from the ground up, recruiting a sport support staff and building a club, and then recruiting a team, it's incredibly exciting. And it's a challenge that I really embrace.'
The 40-year-old was most recently with Man City Women, returning to the club in March as its interim head coach following Gareth Taylor's firing. He stayed for the remainder of that season. Cushing previously coached the team for seven years, from 2013 to 2020, winning six major trophies including the 2016 league title, two Women's Super League Cups and the 2017 FA Women's Cup.
In 2020, Cushing moved to the United States to become assistant coach at New York City FC, staying within City Football Group. He was part of the staff that led the club to its first MLS Cup title in 2021 and was promoted to interim head coach midway through the 2022 season when Ronny Deila departed for Standard Liège. He moved into the role permanently later that season and would lead the team to the Eastern Conference final and a triumph in Campeones Cup, the annual match between champions of MLS and Liga MX. But after two seasons as permanent manager, Cushing was fired following the club's elimination from the MLS Cup playoffs.
'The period after New York was a really good opportunity for me, after a solid period of head coaching, to do some reflection and evaluating on where I wanted to go next, and what was really important to me and my family,' Cushing said. 'But also what my ambition (was), and being really clear on what organization and what challenge is going to get the best out of me, and also what value I can add to an organization.'
It was following his departure from Manchester City Women that Cushing first connected with Denver Summit. He recalled receiving a call while home with his family, enjoying some time off. The conversations snowballed from there, he said.
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'Nick brings world-class experience, a passion for player development, and a tactical vision that will excite Summit supporters,' Curt Johnson, Denver's general manager, said in a statement. 'He's won major trophies and is the right leader to guide us into our first season and beyond.'
Cushing is now tasked with building his team from scratch. The first player piece appears to be in place, with Denver reportedly swinging a trade with Orlando for Colorado Springs native Ally Watt, only to loan her back for the remainder of the 2025 season. Cushing will be filling out his support staff and handpicking the rest of the players who will debut in 2026.
'The decisions that we make over the next six, seven months are going to be critical in giving us the foundation to be competitive in season one,' Cushing said. 'I totally understand and appreciate that expansion comes with challenge, but that's why we're in sport, right? Challenges. I want to embrace that.'
The manager envisions building a team with an attacking style of play that will excite fans, while also blending his learnings from both New York City FC and Manchester City. The former taught him how to navigate a U.S. league with a salary cap, and his many years within Manchester City instilled a possession element to his preferred style of play.
Cushing said the team will be looking to NWSL's free agency list, around the league and around the world for potential signees. The team is, of course, also hoping to identify players with deep ties to Colorado, such as Watt. He envisions a mix of local talent, experienced winners and young stars. 'We want a bit of everything,' he says.
'We would be crazy not to try and bring some players that have a real emotional connection to Denver,' Cushing said. 'For us, it's about trying to work through the blend and the balance of the squad. It's not going to be all Colorado players. It's not going to be all attacking players. We have to blend the team and balance the squad to make sure that we have a team that can be competitive.'
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Cushing has experience working with some of football's biggest stars, including Lucy Bronze, Kerolin and Esme Morgan, to name a few. That was surely a draw for Denver Summit, yet for Cushing, one of the biggest draws to joining the club, he says, was the people who were already there.
'I've been really clear in my process of reflection that I think I will get the best out of myself, and I can give the best version of myself if I work with people with ambition and energy, and people (who) are hungry to create something special,' he said.
'Whether that is initially with our first team, whether it's in the future with our academy … I want to play my part and give myself to a group of people that have energy and create something special for Denver, and that was the reason why I knew this was the right project for me.'