Women's sports bars are opening in Philly — part of a booming trend
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Philly is getting two new women's sports bars — part of a trend with more than a dozen establishments slated to open across the U.S.
Why it matters: With viewership and attendance for women's sports soaring, fans are building hubs that are about more than watching games.
Driving the news: Marsha's, founded by Philadelphian Chivonn Anderson, is opening this summer on South Street at what was formerly the Woolly Mammoth.
- Anderson wants to make the bar into a "sleek and sexy" hub for women's and Philly sports, she told Philadelphia Gay News.
- Marsha's will have multiple TVs for sports viewing, plus some will be dedicated to LGBTQ+ films and TV. She also hopes to host burlesque, drag shows and dance parties there, per Philadelphia Gay News.
Zoom in: The bar's name is a nod to the late Black trans activist Marsha P. Johnson, who became a key figure in the 1969 Stonewall Riots.
- Anderson aims to open Marsha's by mid-to-late August, just in time for the Eagles' season opener against Dallas.
Meanwhile, a community of women's sports fans is working to open a women's sports bar in Philly next year.
- Watch Party PHL has been fundraising to open their own space, Metro Philadelphia reports. A location and timeline are still in the works.
The big picture: At least six women's sports bars have opened across the country this year.
- As many as 17 are on the way in various stages of funding and construction.
Catch up quick: It started with The Sports Bra, a Portland bar dedicated to supporting and showing women's sports, founded in April 2022.
- Rough and Tumble Pub in Seattle, as well as Whiskey Girl Tavern in Chicago, followed later that year. By the end of 2024, three more had opened.
- Bar owners mix the fun and camaraderie of team sports with an atmosphere that's welcoming to everyone, including nontraditional sports fans and the LGBTQ+ community.
Friction point: Some bar owners have gotten sexist and anti-LGBTQ+ hate.
Between the lines: Many of these bar owners also struggle to secure small-business loans, increasing the barrier to opening, says Kaitlyn Laabs, who is making a documentary about women's sports bars called "Untapped."
The bottom line: The bars "galvanize the community," Laabs says.
- "They've become centers of social, economic and political power in the communities where they exist."