A NEW AUSTIN BAR WANTS TO BECOME A COMMUNITY HUB FOR WOMEN’S SPORTS FANS AND PLAYERS

A new bar that will highlight women’s sports is aiming to open in Austin this year. ATX Women’s Sports Pub wants to open in the fall of 2024, with an address to be determined still.

National interest in women’s sports is at a high not seen in decades, if ever (a recent game between Iowa and Louisiana State University, for instance, was the most-watched women’s college basketball game in history). And to that, ATX Women’s Sports Pub co-founders and co-owners Debra Hallum and Marlene du Plessis want to open a women’s sports pub that focuses on women’s sports. “This is one way to elevate women, and to focus on some equality for women,” Hallum says. “But it’s also a way for us to bring awareness and attention to all of the women’s sports that are out there and how much fun and how great they are at their craft.”

For ATX WSP, the duo was motivated by two Pacific Northwest women’s sports bars that opened in 2022: the Sports Bra in Portland and Rough & Tumble Pub in Seattle. They visited the bars in 2023, and wanted to do something similar for Austin. It was inspirational how both owners — Sports Bra’s Jenny Nguyen and Rough & Tumble’s Jen Barnes — “stepped out and are doing this for women and women’s equality and for sports,” says Hallum.

As sports fans themselves, Hallum and du Plessis believed that a similar bar would work in Austin. “Let’s do something that we’re passionate about, which is elevating women, women’s equal play in sports, women’s equal pay in sports, and let’s normalize women’s sports,” Hallum says.

ATX WSP will also be partnering with local girls sports teams. Likewise, they will donate 10 percent of its profits to female-focused sports nonprofits in the city, especially those aiming to provide athletic access to girls. Other plans include potentially screening women’s sports movies and documentaries, as well as hosting Girl Dad nights, where fathers bring their daughters to hang.

For ATX WSP’s food and drink, Hallum anticipates creating a “small, elevated pub menu” that is easy for groups. Expect appetizers and family-style options, plus a full bar with beers, cocktails, and nonalcoholic options. The duo is currently figuring out the details, and seeing who they can tag to develop these menus.

Du Plessis is originally from South Africa, while Debra hails from Oklahoma, but the two have been in Austin for decades. Du Plessis worked in educational leadership and Hallum in telecommunications, until they decided that they wanted to open this bar.

While the duo is investing their own money, they need more financial support. So they launched a startup crowdfunding campaign to help with the opening costs. They’re asking for $250,000, with the funds going towards finding a location (ideally in Central Austin), renovations, staff salaries, and creating artwork of female athletes throughout time to be displayed at the bar.

The whole point of ATX WSP is to be there for women and fans of women sports. “We want to be there for the community and we want them to have the opportunity to weigh in,” Hallum says, and this way, people have a deeper connection to the bar. Already, they’ve been having people vote on their preferred logo for the bar on Instagram.

Wherever ATX Women’s Sports Pub — nicknamed ATX WSP — ends up in Austin, it’ll air women’s sports games. Hallum and du Plessis also want the bar to serve as a gathering point for sports fans and female athletes, with events and meet-and-greets. They’re already talking about partnering with local women’s sports teams and school athletics departments, such as semi-professional soccer club Austin Rise FC and Lady Longhorn Athletics. Every organization that they spoke to responded that, “‘We want to be able to meet with our fans and we also want a place to go to,’ so we want to be that base for them,” Hallum tells Eater.

2024-05-03T17:40:02Z dg43tfdfdgfd