Where to watch the Euros 2024 in Manchester

Almost Famous is a legend in its own lunchtime. Manchester’s original purveyor of OTT stacked dirty burgers and in-your-face attitude has now opened a fifth outpost in Withington.

Atlas Bar is known as one of the originals of Manchester’s modern cafe-bar scene. And for its extensive collection of gins – over 570 varieties and counting.

If dancing on tables with two-pint steins is what you’re after, head to Bierkeller in The Printworks. This Bavarian-themed bar is best known for its live oompah bands which play at weekends. It’s a raucous night out complete with lederhosen and copious amounts of German beer.

BOX is all about big-screen sports, booze (including two-for-one cocktails) and blokes singing – “bandeoke” is a thing and it exists here – live music Thursday to Saturday, shuffleboard and tournament-themed food (Six Nations served up fiery dragon fries and a burger de Paris).

The Brotherhood of Pursuits and Pastimes has a more grown-up look than most-sports bars, all muted greens rather than shouty neon. However, when it comes to atmosphere, it’s a great place to watch live events like the Euros and the Olympics.

Calcio! is a sports and retro gaming bar on Dale Street in the Northern Quarter. As anyone who remembers watching Italia 90 will know, football is the focus here, but old-school consoles provide the drama when there’s not a match on.

The Crafty Pig is a sociable bar on the edge of Manchester’s Northern Quarter with a busy beer garden and a sports bar vibe.

The Deansgate is a bit of a landmark pub in Manchester, having been in this spot for 200 years.

Food hall meets music festival is how we’d describe Freight Island to anyone confused about what they’ll find at this regenerated rail depot beyond Piccadilly Station. 

The Lawn Club is a summery Spinningfields paradise with lots of outdoor space and fantastic cocktails. It’s also a winter wonderland with a cosy yurt and an après-ski vibe. There’s a flexibility to this bar which gives it year round appeal and which also makes it a popular choice for events and parties.

Opened in the summer of 2022 after a hefty refurb which transformed the tired-looking New Century Hall of the mid-twentieth century into a newfangled music and dining destination in Manchester’s trendy NOMA district.

O’Neill’s in the Printworks is a lively bar (some would say too lively) that’s known as a decent place to watch the football, or to go for pre-Arena drinks.

From the same stable as The Botanists around town, The Oast House boasts those “famous” Hanging Kebabs and, with its copious outside space in the middle of Spinningfields, is a favourite as a bit of a city centre sunny spot.

The Pen and Pencil is the Northern Quarter’s cool all-day hangout, modelled on the New York bar of the same name popular with the city’s journalists and ad men in the 1950s and 1960s. It has a reputation for great cocktails, quality food and an atmosphere that makes it stand out from nearby imitators.