Update, July 2023: Looking for places to watch the Women’s World Cup 2023? Take a peek at this newer Top Pick.
Ah, can you smell it? Soccer is in the air again. The 2022 World Cup is happening from November 20 until December 18. And here in Seattle, we live in one of the best soccer cities in the US (we’re hosting the freaking 2026 FIFA World Cup). You’re honor-bound as a Seattleite to watch some of the games. Especially since a handful of Sounders players—Jordan Morris and Cristian Roldan (USA), Xavier Arreaga (Ecuador), and Nouhou Tolo (Cameroon)—will represent Seattle on the world stage.
The Qatar summers are just too hot for soccer, so this is the first time the tournament has happened in the winter. It’s also the first time a Middle Eastern country has hosted the Cup. Even at this point in the year, teams will have to play later in the evening to beat the desert heat. The USA, for instance, plays its first three games at 10 pm Qatar time.
This timing makes the World Cup exceptionally weird because many of these national teams haven’t had much time to practice together, and the European teams are pissed because the Cup interrupted their usual seasons. This World Cup is a mess for political reasons, too—like the Qatari anti-LGBTQ laws and the labor practices the country allegedly engaged in to build its new soccer stadiums. The US Men’s National Team is campaigning to stand apart from Qatar by expanding its Black Lives Matter-inspired “Be the Change” campaign to speak out against the anti-LGBTQ laws.
But where do you watch all of this go down in Seattle? There’s no better place to watch some footie than at one of Seattle’s soccer-centered watering holes. Most bars show the USA games. Other games, especially those that air before the sun rises, will vary from bar to bar.
The official party 📺
The official Sounders watch party happens at Seattle Center Armory. Doors open at 9 am and the beergarden kicks off at 10.
The George & Dragon Pub
206 N 36th St
The English cottage-style pub in Fremont is the place to watch soccer this World Cup season. Soccer—haha I mean football—already plays on The George’s telly year-round, so obviously George and his dragon had to go all out for the Cup. The bar plans to open at 7:30 am for the first game on Sunday, November 20, and then will open its doors at 4:30 am for the next week so people can watch all of the group stage games, even the ones that start around 5 in the morning. The George has five TVs inside their pub, but they’re opening their beer garden with three large screens for outside seating. This place is gonna be buzzing the entire Cup. The George is Seattle’s original English Soccer pub, after all.
What to order 🍺
Order an imperial pint (20 ounces) of Fuller’s London Pride Pale Ale. London football clubs have official beers for their team. Fans ranked these beers and found the London Pride Pale, the official brew of Brentford, to be the second-best overall. The best-rated beer, the Gamma Ray American Pale Ale, isn’t available at The George & Dragon. But it has American in the name, so who needs that inauthenticity at a British pub?
The Atlantic Crossing Pub
6508 Roosevelt Way NE
I spent the 2018 World Cup with my butt in an Atlantic Crossing barstool. There are few things like waking up on a World Cup weekend, rolling out of bed, stumbling into Atlantic Crossing, and getting the day started with a pitcher of mimosas and a plate of corned beef hash or a traditional English breakfast, baked beans and all. The key is to arrive early—earlier than you think you need to be there—because the AC is, well, cozy. And it becomes standing room only during the big matches. That makes it all the more fun when something exciting happens in the game. The Atlantic Crossing will be open early for all the USA games and select early games.
Rhein Haus
912 12th Ave
Capitol Hill’s German beer hall has a slew of TVs and a buttload of space. You’re bound to find a table or a sliver of the bar when other places are packed. Plus, there are very few bad viewing angles at Rhein Haus. I watched the 2019 Women’s World Cup here and loved every second. I highly recommend sneaking away from work to watch a match in the middle of the morning and eating German pretzels for breakfast. Rhein Haus will be open bright and early for select World Cup games, starting with the Nov 25 USA vs. England game.
Prost!
7311 Greenwood Ave N + 3407 California Ave SW
Finding which soccer bar to go to is a fun little choose-your-own-adventure that depends on which games you care about. For instance, Seattle’s other German beer hall, Prost!, will be the place to see all USA and German games. If you don’t care or know anything about soccer, you can trust the Germans will put on a good show. Germany is among the favorites to win this year, alongside Brazil and Argentina. You’ll probably want to hit up Prost! and enjoy some creamy, frothy authentic German bier while watching the Germans take on Spain on November 27 at 11 am.
The Dray
708 NW 65th St
Ballard’s resident football bar will be open for nearly every World Cup game. The Dray will open its spacious bar starting at 8 am the first week of the World Cup, and 7 am the following week. While you’ll miss those early-bird 5 am games, you can count on some consistency for the must-see matches in the more humane waking hours. Plus, The Dray has a wide variety of brews and one of the more diverse menus of our Seattle soccer ball selection. (And by diverse, I mean pizzas and sandwiches instead of fish and chips.) What really rules, though, is they have breakfast sandwiches. So, why not change your pre-work ritual to chowing down on a pesto egg sandwich with a side of international soccer?
