The sport route

If feeling sporty means watching the action instead of taking part then follow Time Out’s sporting party route 1 Comments

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Whether you prefer to follow cricket, rugby, football or almost any other sport there is plenty of opportunity to watch televised sport in Dubai.

Watching from your own sofa will give you play-by-play coverage but you can’t match the atmosphere of going out to watch a game. If you can’t make it to the stadium then watching in a crowded bar, café or club is the next best thing.

We look at some of the city’s best sports bars and create the Time Out sport route.

The Underground: Deciding your sporting party route is all a manner of choosing the direction you want to travel in. The idea is to finish somewhere that will be very busy at night. If there is a late kick off or the climax to a test is expected to arrive after dark you will want to be in Bur Dubai at that time. It has the highest concentration of big sport bars so you should start at the other end of town and move towards the creek. This makes Dubai Marina’s Underground bar the perfect lace to start off. It is a Liverpool FC stronghold so if you spot an early start for that team move to The Underground to kick things off in full song.

Nezesaussi: This antipodean/South African sports hangout is the ideal place to continue your route. Although it does show live football, Nezesaussi shines brightest when screening rugby or cricket matches. Internationsl banter is always light-hearted and major gloating can be enjoyed if your country comes out on top. Slink away and stock up on bar snacks if you’re losing. This is, essentially, as posh pub and accordingly the grub is tasty and satisfying.

Barrels: This relatively new Bur Dubai bar is not the biggest but is home to one of the nicest features of any venue in Dubai: private screens at every table. Find yourself a seat at any table and you don’t need to worry about being able to see the screen as you will have one built into your table. This is particularly enjoyable for watching a cricket match as you can take your tea at the same time as the players and pontificate on the finer points of the game.

Goodfellas: Length of service alone make this Bur Dubai’s most popular sports spot and the top place to catch all things English. Goodfellas shows all Premier League and rugby matches so whatever time you swing by there’s sure to be something to take your fancy. It’s a great penultimate stop-off on the perfect Dubai sports route.

Time Café: You have to admire the people behind Time Café. They know what the sport crowd really want and they will offer just that. This can be the only explanation for any venue having more than 50 screens showing every major sporting event in the world. This is at its most impressive for a major event (think Ashes, Rugby World Cup, Champions League Final) when all screens are showing the same match and the place is rammed. Throw in a few games consoles and traditional bar games and you can see why sports lovers count Time Café as a spiritual home.