There hits a point in every season of every sport where it’s obvious that a local favorite team just sucks. And while the die-hard fans will stick it out to the very bitter end, a large percentage of fans will lose interest. When that happens, there’s a good chance they’re not going to come in and watch the games at your sports bar.

So, what can sports bar and sports-themed restaurant operators do? How can you keep hold of fans’ attentions when all hope is lost, and the team’s best outcome is tanking to get the number one draft pick?

Fair or not, it becomes up to you and your teams to give fans a reason to come back. That doesn’t mean just a great menu and great service, but also a great experience, something unique, and maybe a little discount bribery. You want your sports bar to transcend the record of the team your guests follow.

Here are a couple of ideas to get you started.

Entice Fans with Rewards and Giveaways

Sports bar appetizers and a beer on a table top. In the background, a few sports fans watch a game on TV.

When the excitement, joy, and hope of watching their favorite team win games fades, guests need other reasons to come visit. This means sports bar operators need to find ways of sweetening the pot such as ol’ standbys like giveaways, rewards, and loyalty programs.

These programs can really include anything and everything your bar can think of, but should be straightforward to run, easy for fans to achieve, and easy to guests to cash-in. It’s all about creating “stickier” guests.

For example, perhaps your sports bar can give folks a discount if they’re in your bar and their team, unexpectedly, wins. Or maybe guests get a free drink if their local favorite is able to cover the points spread. You could also give your guests 1% off their meal for each point scored by the local favorite team (sport dependent). Or run a simple loyalty program where fans get a free app or drink after visiting your bar after X many times.

When things are bad, it’s up to you and your team to make up for it somehow. Make sure watching the game is still fun and get creative.

Don’t Be Afraid to Get Cheeky

Three men at a sports bar, laughing and toasting with mugs of beer.

When things get bad, what else can you do but laugh? Similar to the above, you could also run promotions around just how bad your local team is.

Team lost again? Reward your guests who came in and watched another L. Team got blown out? Perhaps guests and fans who watched the trash-fire in your seats get a bigger reward to soften the blow.

The goal is to take the bitter edge off the team being terrible, having a few laughs in the process, and build loyalty to your sports bar. Your team can’t always be the best, but you can still make the best out of a bad situation and win over fans in the process.

Leverage Your Local Fan Club

Group of fans at a sports bar celebrating together

Local fans pour right in when things are good, but it can be a ghost town when things are bad. Now’s the time to lean on and leverage the power of fan clubs in your area. Whether you built a fan club of your own or have courted outside group,

Fan clubs are generally filled with die hard fans who will watch the game through thick and thin. Having one that uses your sports bar as their headquarters during the season is a sure way of making sure you have some bodies in your seats during game time and keep game day from being a slow day.

Make sure you’re catering to this group with targeted marketing, gameday menus built to their desires, and a great viewing experience. Work with club leaders to figure out what would make watching a bad team more fun. Make it a collaborative process that ends in a win-win for everyone.

If you need help finding or starting a fan club at your sports bar, we got ya covered with this free ebook!

Diversify Your Games and Sports

Sports fans watching professional lacrosse, professional women's hockey, and ultimate disc at a sports pub.

If your local teams aren’t cutting it, you may want to expand what games you’re showing at your sports bar or restaurant. There’s always something fun and entertaining to show on your TVs; you just need to know those are and deliver it to your guests.

The SportsTV Guide (STVG) lists every game on TV and streaming based on your location and TV content providers, so the games you want to show are easy to find. It also boasts the Q Score, an STVG features that rates the top games and sporting events on TV. This takes out the guess work of what games will be the most exciting for your guests to watch and is catered to your audience.

This also might be a great time to experiment with other types of matchups and TV entertainment events you show at your sports bar. For example, there’s a brand-new Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) that formed this summer and is slated to start in January 2024. There are other and numerous underappreciated sports out there you could show – everything from lacrosse to ultimate disc.

Also consider streaming eSports at your bar, too. It has one of the biggest fanbases around and is much more popular with younger audiences than traditional sports. If you need help getting started with eSports and marketing to fans, we created a free ebook download to get you going.

Lastly, You Gotta Market

The best ideas won’t matter if your guests don’t know about it. So, make sure you’re marketing regularly to your guests on what’s happening at your bar.

Use every marketing medium at your disposal – email, social media, digital signage, table tents, bathroom wall flyers, influencers, etc. Let them know what you have cooking at your locations and give them reasons to come back when their team doesn’t.