The Fan’s Paradise: Sports Café

You pay and go in. Instantly a lady passes you a fresh beer, and three steps later you find yourself surrounded by dozens of televisions showing stadiums, athletes and their supporters from all over the world. Before realizing where you are, a huge, joyful scream erupts.

You’ve arrived to The Sports Café in Haymarket - just five minutes from Piccadilly Circus. This is the London bar where everyone who doesn’t want to miss their beloved team must go.

Pool tables abound at The Sports Cafe! Photo Credit: Mark Hillary

While the majority of London pubs show matches each day, they are principally oriented to British supporters. It’s usually easier to settle for an English third division game, than to convince a barman to switch the channel to a big European match like Barcelona vs. Real Madrid.

This is why the Sports Café exists and prospers.

Indeed football competitions represent the biggest part of what you can see at the Café, but after 11pm NBA, NFL and other American matches are shown live on big screens. Basically whatever sport is happening will be shown, and if for some reason it’s not, the staff take requests. This place is a haven for international students with a sports addiction.

Tuesday and Wednesday are without a doubt the most crowded due to the Champions League. The queue outside can be longer than a penalty area, and bouncers are more severe than a referee, only allowing a few people in every few minutes.

Waiting while your team is already on the pitch can be exhausting, but once inside, your patience is totally rewarded. For nearly two hours the bar turns into a stadium where supporters sing, scream, rejoice and despair. During half-time breaks they order pints and eat tasty nachos.

After the final whistle, people wearing various coloured shirts or scarves leave the place side-by-side. But only a short period later and the Sports Café is full once again. A new match is due to begin. If a “fans’ paradise” exists, it probably looks like this place.