A great sports bar requires three things: enough screens that you can always see the match, enough pints that the queue moves fast, and enough atmosphere that strangers high-five each other when the goal goes in. The 20 below all qualify. Some are pub institutions; some are American-style multi-screen joints; all of them know what they're doing on a Saturday afternoon.
The 20 best sports bars in the world
01 · New York
Midtown
$
Irish-American · 30 TVs
Iconic Midtown sports bar — 30 TVs, Irish-American sports culture, full Premier League coverage.
Order: A pint of Guinness during the match
02 · London
Multiple
$
Multi-screen sports pub
Multi-screen London sports pub chain.
Order: A pint + the live match
03 · London
Multiple
$
American-style sports bar
American-style London sports bar chain.
Order: A craft IPA + American sports
04 · Manchester
Piccadilly
$
Craft beer + sports
Manchester craft beer pub with serious football coverage.
Order: A craft IPA during United v City
05 · Glasgow
Sauchiehall Street
$
Scottish football pub
Iconic Glasgow football pub.
Order: A pint during the Old Firm
06 · Chicago
West Loop
$$
Sports bar + biker
West Loop sports bar with biker aesthetic.
Order: A craft IPA during the Bears game
07 · Boston
Dorchester
$
Irish sports pub
Iconic Dorchester Irish-American sports pub.
Order: A pint of Guinness during the Bruins game
08 · Liverpool
Anfield
$
Liverpool FC pub
Iconic Anfield-area Liverpool FC pub.
Order: A pint during the Reds match
09 · Edinburgh
Old Town
$
Scottish football pub
Edinburgh Old Town football pub.
Order: A pint during the Scotland match
10 · Dublin
North Quay
$
Irish sports pub
North Quay Irish sports pub.
Order: A pint of Guinness during the GAA
The Americas: where sports bars are a serious format
11 · Berlin
Kreuzberg
$
International sports pub
Kreuzberg sports pub showing international football.
Order: A craft beer during the Bundesliga
12 · Amsterdam
Centrum
$
Irish sports pub
Iconic central Amsterdam Irish sports pub.
Order: A pint of Guinness during the Eredivisie
13 · Lisbon
Cais do Sodré
$
Irish sports pub
Cais do Sodré Irish-style sports pub.
Order: A pint during the Portugal match
14 · Rome
Centro Storico
$
Irish sports pub
Centro Storico Irish-style sports pub.
Order: A pint of Guinness during Serie A
15 · Sydney
The Rocks
$$
Sports bar with harbour view
The Rocks sports bar with harbour view.
Order: An icy beer during the NRL
16 · Melbourne
CBD
$
Sports + craft beer
CBD sports pub with craft beer focus.
Order: A craft IPA during the AFL
17 · Boston
Fenway
$$
Sports bar · Fenway
Iconic Fenway-area sports bar.
Order: A craft IPA during the Sox game
18 · Bangkok
Sukhumvit
$
British sports pub
Sukhumvit British-style sports pub.
Order: A pint during the Premier League
19 · Singapore
Boat Quay
$
British sports pub
Boat Quay British-style sports pub.
Order: A pint during the Premier League
20 · Hong Kong
Central
$$
Sports + craft beer
Central HK sports pub with craft beer focus.
Order: A craft IPA during the Premier League
The full guide, city by city
Each entry below is a deep dive into the best 10 bars in that city — picked by editors who live there.
Browse the full sports-bar indexSports bars by city — every featured bar has a profile page.
See the full list
What makes a great sports bar
A great sports bar isn't about the food (though good wings help). It's about the room knowing why everyone's there. The 20 above all qualify. Connolly's in NYC and The Cabbage Hall in Liverpool represent the two ends of the spectrum — American-style multi-screen and pure football-pub. Both work because they take the match seriously.
