Best Sports Bars in Exeter 2026: Where to Watch Live Sport

What makes a good sports bar in Exeter?

Exeter is a rugby city first and a football city a close second, so the question is rarely "is the match on?" and more often "can I actually see it, and is there any atmosphere?" A good sports bar here gets three things right: enough screens that you are not craning round a pillar, the subscriptions that carry the fixtures you care about (Sky Sports and TNT Sports between them cover most Premier League football and Premiership rugby), and a crowd that turns up for the same reason you did.

We have split this guide into dedicated sports bars, where the screens are the point, and pubs that show sport well, where the match sits alongside a proper meal or a quiet pint. Every venue below was checked as trading in September 2026 against its own website and the Food Standards Agency register.

Which are the best dedicated sports bars in Exeter?

The Stand Off, Longbrook Street

If you want to watch the Exeter Chiefs somewhere other than Sandy Park, start here. The Stand Off describes itself as Exeter's only Irish bar and restaurant, and it was set up in 2018 by two well-known local professional rugby players, Gareth Steenson and Carl Rimmer. That lineage shows on matchday: rugby is the headline act, and the venue calls itself "Exeter's home of sport".

The bar lists seven large screens throughout plus a giant projector on the stage, and shows Premier League football, boxing, cricket and international tournaments alongside the rugby. It is also a live music venue, with bands booked through the week, and runs events such as sporting celebrity dinners and Question of Sport nights. Free pool, darts and board games fill the gaps between fixtures, and the kitchen does pub classics, sharing platters and Sunday roasts. The Guinness is, by the bar's own account, a point of pride.

Address: Unit 2, Portland House, Longbrook Street, EX4 6AH. Screens: Seven large screens plus a stage projector. Best for: Rugby fans, the Chiefs, groups who want live music after the final whistle.

Ludo Sports Bar and Kitchen, Guildhall

Ludo is the polished option. It sits inside the Guildhall Shopping Centre off Queen Street and was built around wall-to-wall ultra-HD screens positioned so most seats have a clear view. Its signature feature is an upstairs roof terrace with panoramic views across the city, which makes it a very good half-time spot on a dry afternoon.

The fixture list is broad: Premier League and Championship football, rugby, cricket, darts, Formula One, boxing, tennis, NFL and horse racing. It is a good pick for a mixed group where not everyone is a die-hard fan, because the food and the terrace carry the evening even if the match does not. Note that Ludo is closed on Mondays except for private event enquiries, so check before planning a Monday Night Football outing.

There is more to do than watch. Ludo has added interactive darts lanes, which suit a group that wants something to play during a dull first half, and on Fridays it runs a Live Lounge with local live music to ease from the working week into the weekend. On Sundays it is open from midday until 11pm, which covers the late afternoon Premier League slot comfortably.

Address: Unit 19, Guildhall Shopping Centre, Queen Street, EX4 3FB. Hours: Tuesday to Sunday from midday, until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays and 11pm on Sundays. Best for: Mixed groups, date nights with a match on, sunny-afternoon fixtures.

Allstars Sports Bar, Sidwell Street

Allstars is where you go when the sport is the whole afternoon. It is part of a small South West group with sites in Bristol, Taunton and Weston-super-Mare, and the Exeter bar on Sidwell Street is as much a cue-sports hall as a sports bar: the venue lists 17 English pool tables, four American pool tables, four full-size snooker tables, three auto-scoring darts oches and seven more standard boards. It describes itself as the home of Devon County Pool, so on league nights you will share the room with players who take their cue sport as seriously as others take the football.

Screens run throughout the venue, and there is an outdoor terrace with two 70-inch outdoor TVs, which makes it one of the better options in the city for a summer tournament. Beyond football and rugby, Allstars is one of the few places in the city that will reliably have golf, MotoGP, cycling, horse racing and greyhounds on. It opens at 10am every day and, in its own words, closes "when the bar goes quiet", so early kick-offs and late fight cards are both covered. There are private party rooms for groups, and student deals run Monday to Thursday.

Address: 19-23 Sidwell Street, EX4 6NN. Best for: All-day sport, pool and snooker between matches, niche sports you will not find on a pub screen.

Which Exeter pubs are best for watching football and rugby?

City Gate, Iron Bridge

City Gate is a Young's pub with 20 hotel rooms above it, and most people know it for the food. It also shows live sport, and its real advantage is the beer garden: a covered, heated stretch tent means you can watch outdoors without gambling on the Devon weather. If half your group wants a match and the other half wants a decent meal of British seasonal cooking, this is the compromise that works. The garden also has large outdoor screens, and the pub says it shows Premier League football, live rugby and major fixtures on them through the season.

It also runs quiz nights, so it doubles as a midweek social spot. For more city-centre options nearby, see our best pubs in Exeter guide.

Address: 1 Iron Bridge, EX4 3RB. Best for: Sport with good food, watching outdoors under cover.

The Mount Radford, Magdalen Road

A Greene King local on Magdalen Road that has been a pub since 1850 and takes its sport seriously, with both Sky Sports and TNT Sports. That combination matters: between the two you get most live Premier League football and Premiership rugby without having to switch venues. There is a cashless pool table, darts and shuffleboard, plus live music and a quiz every Sunday, and the pub is dog-friendly. The pub lists Formula One and darts among the sport it shows, as well as football and rugby, so it is worth a look if your sport is not one of the big two.

Address: 73-75 Magdalen Road, EX2 4TA. Channels: Sky Sports and TNT Sports. Best for: A proper local for a regular weekly fixture.

Samuel Jones, Exeter Quay

A St Austell Brewery pub in a converted warehouse on the Quay, with screens for the big game, interactive darts and a waterside garden. It is the pick if you want to combine a match with a walk along the river, and it is dog-friendly. Our Exeter Quay guide has more on what else is around it.

Address: Commercial Road, EX2 4AE. Best for: Matchday on the waterfront, groups that want darts as well as a screen.

The Imperial, New North Road

This Wetherspoon occupies Elmfield House, built in 1810 and run as the Imperial Hotel from 1923 until 1994, with an orangery added after 1897. It is huge, close to the university and St David's station, and has TV screens, though it is not a dedicated sports bar. Go for the building, the space and the Wetherspoon prices on a big international day; go elsewhere if you need a specific niche fixture. If you are socialising on a budget, it earns its place.

Address: New North Road, EX4 4AH. Best for: Large groups, students, budget matchdays.

Which Exeter bars show Sky Sports and TNT Sports?

Most live Premier League football and Premiership rugby in the UK is split between Sky Sports and TNT Sports, so a venue with both saves you from checking the listings every weekend. Among the venues in this guide, The Mount Radford on Magdalen Road states on its own page that it shows both Sky Sports and TNT Sports. The dedicated sports bars, The Stand Off, Ludo and Allstars, all list Premier League football and rugby among the sport they show, but they do not all name their subscriptions, so for a specific fixture it is worth a quick call or a look at the venue's social media before you set off. For free-to-air internationals, such as Six Nations rugby and most major football tournaments, any of the pubs above will do.

Where can I watch Exeter Chiefs and Exeter City live?

Sandy Park, Exeter Chiefs

No screen beats being there. Sandy Park, on Sandy Park Way off the M5 at the eastern edge of the city, is home to the Exeter Chiefs and hosted matches at the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup. Matchdays build for hours before kick-off, with bars and fan entertainment inside the ground and a crowd that makes a lot of noise for its size. Check the club's own site for fixtures, tickets and matchday travel, as arrangements change from season to season.

Address: Sandy Park Way, EX2 7NN.

St James Park, Exeter City

Exeter City are owned by their supporters' trust, and St James Park has the intimate, old-school feel that goes with that. The Big Bank terrace is where the noise comes from. The pre-match pub routine is part of the day: the Duke of York on Sidwell Street, the Victoria Inn on Victoria Street and The Bowling Green on Blackboy Road are all a short walk from the ground. The stadium is walkable from the city centre and sits next to St James railway halt.

If you would rather play than watch, our running clubs and parkrun guide and social clubs guide cover ways to get involved in Exeter's sporting life, and our pub quiz guide has the best midweek nights out when there is no match on.

Address: Stadium Way, EX4 6PX.

Why watch sport together?

Watching a match in a room full of people is one of the easiest ways to spend time with others without having to carry a conversation for two hours. The talking points come built in, half-time gives you a natural break, and a weekly fixture gives a group a reason to meet again next week. If you have been finding it harder to meet people, you are not alone, and a regular matchday table is a low-pressure way to change that.