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16 essential Boston-area sports bars at which to watch Boston teams win even more championships
It’s the start of baseball season, and plenty of Boston bars and restaurants are ready and waiting with beer, wings, and televisions. Here are 16 of the best sports bars in and around the city at which to watch the Red Sox — or basketball, football, soccer, hockey, and plenty of other sports year-round.
Read MoreOlde Magoun’s Saloon is a neighborhood standby with plenty of screens, good vibes, and a food menu and craft beer list that is surprisingly superior. (Beers from acclaimed New England breweries including Hill Farmstead and the Alchemist have been sighted here.) Watch Red Sox, Patriots, Bruins, and Celtics games here, as well as European soccer matches, rugby, and more.
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The casino has several sports-viewing options, and this is the sportiest, featuring a gigantic video wall and over 70 televisions. There’s a full bar and two food options available onsite: burger chain Shake Shack and Frank & Nick’s, serving panini and brick-oven pizza. The latter is a collaboration between North End restaurateurs Frank DePasquale and Nick Varano.
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At Parlor Sports, it’s all about the beer. Get a pitcher of something light (sports are nothing without light beer) and preferably local. Which is to say, get a pitcher of Night Lite by Everett’s own Night Shift Brewing. Parlor Sports is a popular gathering spot for the Midnight Riders, supporters of the New England Revolution, Greater Boston’s soccer club. Plus, stop by for 11 a.m. Premier League matches on Sundays. But while sports dominate the schedule at Parlor Sports, don’t be surprised to find Jeopardy and the Bachelorette on the television, treated with equal reverence.
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Located at the Hub on Causeway development steps from TD Garden, Banners is a convenient spot to stop by pre- or post-game — and if you want to watch something there, there are ample screens, including one enormous, 40-foot-long one that the restaurant claims is the largest in the Northeast region. (There are also Topgolf Swing Suites onsite.) Banners arrived in 2019 featuring a mostly local tap list and a swanky private dining room.
Sullivan’s Tap, a century-old dive bar that reopened under new ownership in 2019 (with minor tweaks), is the spot at which to drink before and after a Celtics game. Play some pool; drink some cheap domestic beers; soak up the classic dive bar vibes. But eat first — there’s no food.
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You’ll never walk alone at the Phoenix Landing. This Central Square joint is the home base of LFC Boston, the city’s official Liverpool supporters club. Non-members are welcome on game day, but get there early, otherwise you won’t get in. Order a Carlsberg and settle in.
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Between the upstairs bar and downstairs bar, there’s plenty of seats to watch the game — or just hang out on the outside patio instead. It’s also the official bar of local Arsenal supporters club the Boston Gooners. Head to the downstairs bar, join the crowd, and grab a Carlsberg for $3 during Arsenal matches.
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The Cask, a classic Fenway-adjacent sports bar, is where everyone goes to get loose before Red Sox games because beers are prohibitively expensive at Fenway Park. There’s a location out in Marshfield, too.
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Bleacher Bar is literally located underneath the centerfield bleachers in Fenway Park, just beneath the famous red seat, which marks the spot of the 502-foot home run Ted Williams hit during the 1946 season. The bar has a window cut out so patrons can see the field (it closes during the game, sadly.) The bar occupies space once used for the away team’s batting cage, so drinkers can sip on a beer where Brooks Robinson used to take warm-up cuts.
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Game On has cornhole sets, an indoor batting cage, ping-pong tables, and space for 650 drinkers. It’s a lot. But it’s a solid option for a pre- or post-Sox beer or three.
This Coolidge Corner haunt feels out of place in the neighborhood — and that’s why it’s so perfect. Each wall is a tribute to one Boston sports team or another, and there’s plenty of cheap beer on tap. A more perfect sports bar doesn’t exist.
Cathedral Station is Boston’s only combination gay bar/sports bar, and it is excellent. Grab a bite at Myers & Chang, then scoot across Washington Street to Cathedral Station for some beers and some sports. There’s free pool and darts, a patio, and — a South End rarity — free parking in the back.
Until pretty recently, South Boston tended more toward well-worn sports bars; at a little over a decade old, Stats is relatively shiny and new in the grand scheme of things. Even for those who long for Southie bars of the past, this is a good destination filled with plenty of televisions (24) showing plenty of sporting events.
The Banshee is the best spot in Dorchester for soccer and rugby. The pub is home to quite a few supporters groups for several soccer leagues, plus local Green Bay Packers fans.
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Named for Bobby Orr, the Fours is the quintessential Bruins bar. The Boston location closed in 2020 after over 40 years in business, so Bruins fans can’t hop right over before or after a game at the Garden anymore, but Quincy and Norwell locations remain in business. The Fours Quincy has been open since 1994, packed with sports memorabilia and serving an extensive New England-y comfort food menu, from steak tips to baked scrod.
Olde Magoun’s Saloon is a neighborhood standby with plenty of screens, good vibes, and a food menu and craft beer list that is surprisingly superior. (Beers from acclaimed New England breweries including Hill Farmstead and the Alchemist have been sighted here.) Watch Red Sox, Patriots, Bruins, and Celtics games here, as well as European soccer matches, rugby, and more.
The casino has several sports-viewing options, and this is the sportiest, featuring a gigantic video wall and over 70 televisions. There’s a full bar and two food options available onsite: burger chain Shake Shack and Frank & Nick’s, serving panini and brick-oven pizza. The latter is a collaboration between North End restaurateurs Frank DePasquale and Nick Varano.
At Parlor Sports, it’s all about the beer. Get a pitcher of something light (sports are nothing without light beer) and preferably local. Which is to say, get a pitcher of Night Lite by Everett’s own Night Shift Brewing. Parlor Sports is a popular gathering spot for the Midnight Riders, supporters of the New England Revolution, Greater Boston’s soccer club. Plus, stop by for 11 a.m. Premier League matches on Sundays. But while sports dominate the schedule at Parlor Sports, don’t be surprised to find Jeopardy and the Bachelorette on the television, treated with equal reverence.
Located at the Hub on Causeway development steps from TD Garden, Banners is a convenient spot to stop by pre- or post-game — and if you want to watch something there, there are ample screens, including one enormous, 40-foot-long one that the restaurant claims is the largest in the Northeast region. (There are also Topgolf Swing Suites onsite.) Banners arrived in 2019 featuring a mostly local tap list and a swanky private dining room.
Sullivan’s Tap, a century-old dive bar that reopened under new ownership in 2019 (with minor tweaks), is the spot at which to drink before and after a Celtics game. Play some pool; drink some cheap domestic beers; soak up the classic dive bar vibes. But eat first — there’s no food.
You’ll never walk alone at the Phoenix Landing. This Central Square joint is the home base of LFC Boston, the city’s official Liverpool supporters club. Non-members are welcome on game day, but get there early, otherwise you won’t get in. Order a Carlsberg and settle in.
Between the upstairs bar and downstairs bar, there’s plenty of seats to watch the game — or just hang out on the outside patio instead. It’s also the official bar of local Arsenal supporters club the Boston Gooners. Head to the downstairs bar, join the crowd, and grab a Carlsberg for $3 during Arsenal matches.
The Cask, a classic Fenway-adjacent sports bar, is where everyone goes to get loose before Red Sox games because beers are prohibitively expensive at Fenway Park. There’s a location out in Marshfield, too.
Bleacher Bar is literally located underneath the centerfield bleachers in Fenway Park, just beneath the famous red seat, which marks the spot of the 502-foot home run Ted Williams hit during the 1946 season. The bar has a window cut out so patrons can see the field (it closes during the game, sadly.) The bar occupies space once used for the away team’s batting cage, so drinkers can sip on a beer where Brooks Robinson used to take warm-up cuts.
Game On has cornhole sets, an indoor batting cage, ping-pong tables, and space for 650 drinkers. It’s a lot. But it’s a solid option for a pre- or post-Sox beer or three.
This Coolidge Corner haunt feels out of place in the neighborhood — and that’s why it’s so perfect. Each wall is a tribute to one Boston sports team or another, and there’s plenty of cheap beer on tap. A more perfect sports bar doesn’t exist.
Cathedral Station is Boston’s only combination gay bar/sports bar, and it is excellent. Grab a bite at Myers & Chang, then scoot across Washington Street to Cathedral Station for some beers and some sports. There’s free pool and darts, a patio, and — a South End rarity — free parking in the back.
Until pretty recently, South Boston tended more toward well-worn sports bars; at a little over a decade old, Stats is relatively shiny and new in the grand scheme of things. Even for those who long for Southie bars of the past, this is a good destination filled with plenty of televisions (24) showing plenty of sporting events.
The Banshee is the best spot in Dorchester for soccer and rugby. The pub is home to quite a few supporters groups for several soccer leagues, plus local Green Bay Packers fans.
Named for Bobby Orr, the Fours is the quintessential Bruins bar. The Boston location closed in 2020 after over 40 years in business, so Bruins fans can’t hop right over before or after a game at the Garden anymore, but Quincy and Norwell locations remain in business. The Fours Quincy has been open since 1994, packed with sports memorabilia and serving an extensive New England-y comfort food menu, from steak tips to baked scrod.
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