BOSTON — Major League Lacrosse (MLL) announced Monday that Denver has been selected as the host city for the 2019 MLL Championship Weekend, Oct. 4-6.

Colorado is home to a rapidly growing lacrosse market, with US Lacrosse participation statistics showing over 115 percent growth in the last 10 years. This is the first time in MLL’s 19-year history its championship game will be played in Colorado.

The MLL semifinals will be held on Friday, Oct. 4 at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium on the campus of the University of Denver. Faceoff for the first game will take place at 7 p.m. Eastern (5 p.m. Mountain) with game two to follow at approximately 10 p.m. Eastern (8 p.m. Mountain).

The MLL championship game is set for Sunday, Oct. 6 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. Faceoff is at 1 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Mountain) and the game will be televised live on ESPN2.

“We are thrilled to finally bring the 2019 MLL Championship to Denver. Colorado has been a rapidly growing lacrosse market for many years and home to one of the league’s signature franchises,” said Alexander Brown, commissioner of Major League Lacrosse. “We are thrilled to be partnering with Dick’s Sporting Goods Park and the University of Denver to bring the most competitive weekend of professional lacrosse to Colorado.”

Dick’s Sporting Goods Park is comprised of the state-of-the-art 18,000-seat home stadium of the Colorado Rapids (MLS) and its surrounding 24-field, fully-lit soccer complex. This continues the trend of holding the MLL championship game in a pre-determined neutral site location. Last season, the Denver Outlaws took home the Steinfeld Trophy after defeating the Dallas Rattlers in Charleston, S.C. The Outlaws are looking for their fourth straight title game appearance.

“We are incredibly excited to host the Major League Lacrosse Championship game at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park,” said Jim Martin, President & CEO of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment.  “This is the first time in league history that this championship game will be held in the Centennial State, and it should be a memorable event for lacrosse fans in Denver and throughout Colorado.”

For the first time since 2013, the MLL semifinals and championship game will be held on the same weekend. The action starts on Friday at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium, which is home to the Denver Pioneers men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. The 2,000-seat facility was the first lacrosse-only stadium in NCAA Division 1. 

“The University of Denver is proud to host the Major League Lacrosse semifinals at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium,” vice chancellor for athletics, recreation and Ritchie Center operations Karlton Creech said. “Our stadium provides a great atmosphere for the sport in the lacrosse capital of the West, and we look forward to having Denver Outlaws’ fans on our campus during the regular season, and now four semifinalists and their fans this October.”

With the expansion of the 2019 league schedule, this is the first time the MLL championship game will be played during the month of October. Prior to this year, the latest date of an MLL championship game was Sept. 3, 2001 — MLL’s inaugural season.