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USC Spring Football Game
Kyron Hudson of the USC Trojans.
Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images

LA’s Best Sports Bars For a Full Season of Football Action

College football is back this weekend, and the NFL is just weeks away

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Kyron Hudson of the USC Trojans.
| Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images

With two prominent NFL teams in residence at SoFi Stadium, along with the presence of UCLA and USC’s college programs, Los Angeles is all about football. It’s also a city filled with transplants who often bring their own allegiances to game day, making the city’s many sports bars a fun mix of fans, jerseys, and TVs. Here now are just some of the many great sports bars in and around greater Los Angeles, where the sightlines are plentiful, the beers come fast, and the volume is always up.

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Barney's Beanery Burbank

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Micro-chain Barney’s Beanery is still all the rage with casual fans, many of whom come to cheer on their favorite college teams while also downing cheap, colorful drinks. In fact, the throwback spot has even become retro-cool again thanks to social media.

OLY 2016-2024-USA-LOSANGELES
Inside Barney’s Beanery.
Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images

Blue Dog Beer Tavern

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Blue Dog is a craft beer drinker’s paradise. The place is wrapped with tap handles and exposed wood, and it serves the kind of salty, savory pub fare that goes perfectly with a pint or two. Oh, and there are plenty of televisions on as well.

Craft by Smoke and Fire

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The former Crack Shack space in Pasadena has been touched up and given new sports bar/restaurant life thanks to the Craft by Smoke and Fire folks. Expect Texas-ish barbecue and lots of TVs wrapping the big, open space, making this the hottest new spot for game day in all of Pasadena.

Crack Shack Pasadena’s wooden interior with brick wrapping and tall ceilings, at daytime.
The former Crack Shack space has even more sports action now.
Wonho Frank Lee

The Greyhound Bar & Grill

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With two locations (in Glendale and Highland Park), the Greyhound seeks to serve both as a sports bar and as a general neighborhood watering hole. The wings are the sticking point but don’t skip out on the burger or the strong, straightforward cocktails while taking in a game.

Buffalo chicken wings with carrot and celery sticks in a basket at The Greyhound.
Wings from the Greyhound.
Wonho Frank Lee

Elbow Room

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Local fans always have a lot to be proud of with their fan-favorite football teams, and they can mix it up with pizzas and frose at the Elbow Room during game days.

Electric Owl

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Ernesto Uchimura’s burger prowess is legendary, but don’t sleep on his ability to create a great TV-watching ambiance as well. This indoor-outdoor Hollywood hangout is perfect for keeping one eye on the game and the other eye on fantastic burgers, fried chicken sandwiches, and drinks.

A dripping cheese burger with bacon on a tall bun.
A stacked burger at Electric Owl.
Farley Elliott

33 Taps Silver Lake

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It’s hard to imagine a more football-friendly spot than 33 Taps in Silver Lake, where the casual food and cheap beers are matched perfectly with a full wrap of televisions that run from corner to corner in the primary dining area.

A wraparound dining room with TVs during the day.
Inside 33 Taps.
33 Taps

Hi Tops Bar

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Elevated TVs sit on poles throughout the room, making for an immersive viewing experience that leaves room for just about every team to make it on the TVs.

A brick wall at Hi Tops in West Hollywood, California.
Hi Tops.
Jesse Woodward

Pijja Palace

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Pijja Palace has never tried to define itself as anything other than a sports bar. Sure the place serves some of LA’s best food, and is packed nightly as a result, but real locals know that sidling up to the bar to keep one eye on the game is easy enough to do — and sits at the heart of what Pijja Palace is all about.

Bar patrons sit watching TV at Pijja Palace.
Fans at the bar inside Pijja Palace.
Wonho Frank Lee

The Nickel Mine

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The whiskey is strong at the Nickel Mine, the laid-back Westside bar that also caters to nearby UCLA fans — and don’t forget about the thin pizzas and wings.

Busby's West

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Busby’s West is the kind of everyday sports bar that every neighborhood deserves. This place caters to a variety of college football fans, including Sooners.

Long dark shot of the outside of a sports bar, with neon.
Busby’s West
Busby’s West

Tiny's Hi-Dive

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The former Arsenal has turned into another neighborhood-friendly watering hole called Tiny’s Hi-Dive, a classy dive bar with billiards, bar games, and a few well-placed televisions that work great for calmer but still fun sports viewing. The food menu is pretty great, from a smash burger to a Chicago-inspired Italian beef sandwich that just might impress any fans of The Bear. The bar opens daily at 2 p.m., which makes it a nice spot for daytime college football viewing, with a happy hour that lasts until 8 p.m. to boot.

Red leather banquettes in a dimly lit bar, Tiny’s Hi-Dive.
Tiny’s Hi-Dive.
Tiny’s Hi-Dive

901 Bar and Grill

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Generations of USC Trojan fans have made their way through the sticky floors of the iconic 901 bar (called the “Nine-Oh”), the most popular student dive bar near campus. Don’t expect high-end cooking or crafted cocktails, just rabid fans cheering on the football (or other sports) team while downing plates of cheesy pizza and mugs of cold beer.

Brennan's

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This classic turtle-racing spot has ample outdoor space for hanging out, and loves to throw games up on the TVs during the weekends. It’s an iconic Lincoln Boulevard bar that should not be missed.

Brennan’s Pub
Brennan’s Pub
Courtesy ABC

The Wood Urban Kitchen

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Inglewood’s Wood Urban Kitchen is a prime hangout for game day. Not only is it close to SoFi Stadium, it’s also got a killer indoor-outdoor TV setup, and slings some seriously tasty barbecue. What’s more, the weekends are jumping not just with local teams, but also with fans of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, since the Wood also shows those often hard-to-find games.

An indoor bar with television sets.
Hanging out at the small bar inside Wood Urban Kitchen.
Wonho Frank Lee/Eater LA

American Junkie

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This Hermosa Beach spot is right on Pier Avenue and offers delicious food in addition to all the games. Be sure to snag one of those half-baked cookies.

The Crest Sports Bar & Grill

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Old Town Torrance’s Crest Sports Bar is a prime hangout for college football fans eager to enjoy cheap game day food and drink.

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Barney's Beanery Burbank

Micro-chain Barney’s Beanery is still all the rage with casual fans, many of whom come to cheer on their favorite college teams while also downing cheap, colorful drinks. In fact, the throwback spot has even become retro-cool again thanks to social media.

OLY 2016-2024-USA-LOSANGELES
Inside Barney’s Beanery.
Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images

Blue Dog Beer Tavern

Blue Dog is a craft beer drinker’s paradise. The place is wrapped with tap handles and exposed wood, and it serves the kind of salty, savory pub fare that goes perfectly with a pint or two. Oh, and there are plenty of televisions on as well.

Craft by Smoke and Fire

The former Crack Shack space in Pasadena has been touched up and given new sports bar/restaurant life thanks to the Craft by Smoke and Fire folks. Expect Texas-ish barbecue and lots of TVs wrapping the big, open space, making this the hottest new spot for game day in all of Pasadena.

Crack Shack Pasadena’s wooden interior with brick wrapping and tall ceilings, at daytime.
The former Crack Shack space has even more sports action now.
Wonho Frank Lee

The Greyhound Bar & Grill

With two locations (in Glendale and Highland Park), the Greyhound seeks to serve both as a sports bar and as a general neighborhood watering hole. The wings are the sticking point but don’t skip out on the burger or the strong, straightforward cocktails while taking in a game.

Buffalo chicken wings with carrot and celery sticks in a basket at The Greyhound.
Wings from the Greyhound.
Wonho Frank Lee

Elbow Room

Local fans always have a lot to be proud of with their fan-favorite football teams, and they can mix it up with pizzas and frose at the Elbow Room during game days.

Electric Owl

Ernesto Uchimura’s burger prowess is legendary, but don’t sleep on his ability to create a great TV-watching ambiance as well. This indoor-outdoor Hollywood hangout is perfect for keeping one eye on the game and the other eye on fantastic burgers, fried chicken sandwiches, and drinks.

A dripping cheese burger with bacon on a tall bun.
A stacked burger at Electric Owl.
Farley Elliott

33 Taps Silver Lake

It’s hard to imagine a more football-friendly spot than 33 Taps in Silver Lake, where the casual food and cheap beers are matched perfectly with a full wrap of televisions that run from corner to corner in the primary dining area.

A wraparound dining room with TVs during the day.
Inside 33 Taps.
33 Taps

Hi Tops Bar

Elevated TVs sit on poles throughout the room, making for an immersive viewing experience that leaves room for just about every team to make it on the TVs.

A brick wall at Hi Tops in West Hollywood, California.
Hi Tops.
Jesse Woodward

Pijja Palace

Pijja Palace has never tried to define itself as anything other than a sports bar. Sure the place serves some of LA’s best food, and is packed nightly as a result, but real locals know that sidling up to the bar to keep one eye on the game is easy enough to do — and sits at the heart of what Pijja Palace is all about.

Bar patrons sit watching TV at Pijja Palace.
Fans at the bar inside Pijja Palace.
Wonho Frank Lee

The Nickel Mine

The whiskey is strong at the Nickel Mine, the laid-back Westside bar that also caters to nearby UCLA fans — and don’t forget about the thin pizzas and wings.

Busby's West

Busby’s West is the kind of everyday sports bar that every neighborhood deserves. This place caters to a variety of college football fans, including Sooners.

Long dark shot of the outside of a sports bar, with neon.
Busby’s West
Busby’s West

Tiny's Hi-Dive

The former Arsenal has turned into another neighborhood-friendly watering hole called Tiny’s Hi-Dive, a classy dive bar with billiards, bar games, and a few well-placed televisions that work great for calmer but still fun sports viewing. The food menu is pretty great, from a smash burger to a Chicago-inspired Italian beef sandwich that just might impress any fans of The Bear. The bar opens daily at 2 p.m., which makes it a nice spot for daytime college football viewing, with a happy hour that lasts until 8 p.m. to boot.

Red leather banquettes in a dimly lit bar, Tiny’s Hi-Dive.
Tiny’s Hi-Dive.
Tiny’s Hi-Dive

901 Bar and Grill

Generations of USC Trojan fans have made their way through the sticky floors of the iconic 901 bar (called the “Nine-Oh”), the most popular student dive bar near campus. Don’t expect high-end cooking or crafted cocktails, just rabid fans cheering on the football (or other sports) team while downing plates of cheesy pizza and mugs of cold beer.

Brennan's

This classic turtle-racing spot has ample outdoor space for hanging out, and loves to throw games up on the TVs during the weekends. It’s an iconic Lincoln Boulevard bar that should not be missed.

Brennan’s Pub
Brennan’s Pub
Courtesy ABC

The Wood Urban Kitchen

Inglewood’s Wood Urban Kitchen is a prime hangout for game day. Not only is it close to SoFi Stadium, it’s also got a killer indoor-outdoor TV setup, and slings some seriously tasty barbecue. What’s more, the weekends are jumping not just with local teams, but also with fans of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, since the Wood also shows those often hard-to-find games.

An indoor bar with television sets.
Hanging out at the small bar inside Wood Urban Kitchen.
Wonho Frank Lee/Eater LA

Related Maps

American Junkie

This Hermosa Beach spot is right on Pier Avenue and offers delicious food in addition to all the games. Be sure to snag one of those half-baked cookies.

The Crest Sports Bar & Grill

Old Town Torrance’s Crest Sports Bar is a prime hangout for college football fans eager to enjoy cheap game day food and drink.

Related Maps