From watching the big game to hanging out with friends over a burger and beer, sports bars are an American essential, especially in a city like Cleveland which hosts countless major league supporters. But where exactly can you find the best sports bars in Cleveland? We decided to find out!

Whether you follow the Bengals or Browns, Reds or Guardians, Cavs, or Blue Jackets, we’ve considered an array of factors and ranked the ten best locations across the city. Read on to find your next favorite Cleveland hotspot!

10. Cleats Club Seat Grille Old Brooklyn

Rounding out the ten best sports bars in Cleveland, Ohio, we have Cleats Club Seat Grille Old Brooklyn – located on the corner of Harvard Avenue West and Jennings Road - with an index score of 1.984. With free Wi-Fi, on-site parking, and a famous selection of wings and sauces, Cleats Club is a popular pick among groups looking for a relaxed setting to watch the game.

So, there we have it, the ten best sports bars in Cleveland. Hopefully, you’ve found this interesting and are ready to discover your next favorite location - or if you’re heading south, we’ve also ranked the top ten bars in Columbus! In the meantime, head on over to the Betway blog for even more insight from our sport experts.

9. Mulberry’s

The most affordable location to make our top ten, Mulberry’s of Mulberry Avenue earns an index score of 2.133. Along with its low-cost pizza and drink menu, Mulberry’s also offers street parking, TVs, and seating areas perfect for groups, while its Yelp score of 4.0 places it among the top performers on our list.

8. Thirsty Parrot

The baseball-mad Thirsty Parrot ranks alongside the best sports bars in Downtown Cleveland, with an index score of 2.276. Receiving a reputable Yelp rating of 3.5, Guardians fans unsurprisingly feature most prominently among the positive reviews, with plus points of this popular cantina including convenient on-site parking, TVs, a group-friendly setting, and regular happy hour specials.

7. Forest City Shuffleboard

Placing seventh on our list with an index score of 2.345, Forest City Shuffleboard records a close-to-perfect Yelp rating of 4.5. Located on the corner of Lorain Avenue and West 45th Street, Forest City Shuffleboard is a hotspot for groups of all sizes looking for a relaxed setting, and features plenty of nearby street parking as well as TVs and free Wi-Fi.

6. Sainato’s at Rivergate

Italian-inspired Sainato’s at Rivergate picks up an overall index score of 2.494, helped along by a reasonable 3.5 Yelp rating from 122 reviews. Set Downtown on the corner of Columbus Road and Merwin Avenue, particular highlights include ample street parking, TVs, a relaxed setting that’s good for groups, and the handy option of reserving your favorite table.

With Friday and Saturday nights especially lively, enjoy affordably priced food and drink, including a range of happy hour specials.

5. 49th Street Tavern

Taking fifth spot, 49th Street Tavern earns an overall index score of 2.633. And with a tremendous near-perfect Yelp rating of 4.5, it’s no surprise the popular bar and grill ranks so highly.

However, that’s only half the story, with 49th Street Tavern loved by locals for its well-priced food, TVs, complementary Wi-Fi, generous happy hour deals, and flexible reservation options for groups of all sizes.

4. City Tap Cleveland

Placing fourth, City Tap receives a respectable index score of 3.095, with visitors met by an extensive array of reasonably priced beers and a vibrant environment that’s welcoming to groups. And with its Downtown location in Pointe at Gateway, you’ll find plenty of street parking nearby.

With a Yelp rating of 3.5 from 172 reviews, City Tap also has a history of positive comments left by major league sports fans, with Guardians and Cavs supporters featuring most prominently.

3. Winking Lizard Tavern

Found in the Galleria at Erieview, the Winking Lizard Tavern places among the best-ranking sports bars in Downtown Cleveland, earning an index score of 3.199. This is based on the venue’s strong 3.5 Yelp rating from 236 reviews, affordable food and drink, and its welcoming environment.

Serving a classic American menu and hundreds of beer choices, you can also expect a casual setting that’s ideal for groups, free Wi-Fi, and convenient nearby street parking. Fans of all teams are welcome, but Browns fans have left the most positive reviews!

2. The Corner Alley

Ranking second among the best Cleveland sports bars, The Corner Alley earns an overall index score of 3.370, aided by a Yelp rating of 3.0 from 305 reviews.

Situated Downtown, the sports bar also boasts ample street parking, TVs, free Wi-Fi, and a casual environment that’s perfect for groups – it’s also the best bar on our list to visit on a Sunday!

While The Corner Alley doesn’t yet hold a betting terminal license, a significant number of major league teams feature among the bar’s Yelp reviews, including positive ratings left by Guardians, Cavs, and Browns fans.

1. The Clevelander

Located Downtown, The Clevelander bar and grill takes top spot among the best sports bars in the city, with an overall index score of 4.155. This is contributed to by an array of appealing factors, including reasonably priced food and drink, and a Yelp rating of 3.5 from 133 reviews.

Notably the only Ohio sports bar on our list to hold a betting terminal license and offer sports betting, the Clevelander is particularly popular among Guardians fans, offering on-street parking, happy hour specials, and a casual environment that’s great for groups hoping to catch the game.

Methodology

To determine the best sports bars in Cleveland, we first searched the term ‘Sports bars’ for Cleveland on Yelp with the ‘Sports bars’ category selected. This returned all Cleveland sports bars. For each returned venue, we considered six key factors:

  • The bar’s average Yelp score.
  • The number of reviews on Yelp for the bar.
  • The Yelp assigned price category of the sports bar.
  • The sports bar’s amenities score (considering the filters ‘takes reservations’, ‘casual’, ‘good for groups’, ‘offers catering’, ‘happy hour specials’, ‘free Wi-Fi’, ‘TV’, ‘street parking’, ‘on-site parking’, ‘best nights: Friday, Saturday, Sunday’, ‘open to all’).
  • Whether the bar is listed on the register of type C gaming licensees, and able to operate a betting kiosk.
  • The total number of Yelp reviews mentioning local major league sports teams.

Each sports bar was ranked and given an index score between 0-1 for each factor. Index scores were then summed to give each bar a total score between 0-6. Bars were then ranked from highest to lowest.

All data is correct as of 12/23/2022.

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