FEMININOMENON

How a simple dream of good food and good games on TV ushered in a new trend: bars dedicated to women's sports

- BY KIM CURZI

ON A beautiful fall day in Portland, fans gathered inside a local sports bar joking that if they were smart, they would be outside enjoying the sunshine. “The rain is coming,” says a fan sitting by the window, “but I can’t miss this game.”

Game 2 of the WNBA Finals was about to start. It would be a busy NFL Sunday in any sports bar in the country. But at The Sports Bra, the first bar in the United States dedicated entirely to women's sports, every single TV was tuned into the WNBA. And not just during a big series, but always.

“Our motto is, We support women,” says owner and founder Jenny Nguyen. “There are plenty of bars showing men's sports. Even on this same block. This one is dedicated to women.”

Everything in the bar is a tribute to women's sports. The jerseys hanging from the ceiling, the signed posters and memorabilia, even the sports cards pinned to the bathroom walls—Sabrina Ionescu, Billie Jean King, Lisa Leslie, Serena Williams—all the icons are there. The bar itself is full of mostly women, but men come, too. “I love the Aces,” says a man visiting from Austin watching with a friend. “A’ja Wilson slaps.”