The popular and long-running sports bar with 'biggest whisky collection in Staffordshire'

The idea of a bar which caters primarily for sports, offering big screens and plenty of space to watch football, rugby, cricket, boxing and more, is commonplace in the United States.

However, in the United Kingdom, it's something which only began towards the end of the 20th century, starting with one man's vision for such a bar in Cannock in 1998.

Bar Sport is the creation and dream of Scott Murray and was the first of its kind to open in the UK, coming from his love of American sports bars from his time in the country as a boxer.

He recalls: "I was invited out to Houston in Texas in the late 1980s to box and train over there at a camp, but I liked to sneak out for a beer and that's where I first saw the concept for the sports bar.

"That's where I came up with the idea for the sports bar and having grown up in my dad's nightclub business, I had the experience and passion for sport.

"When this old, derelict bingo hall became available, I managed to acquire it by begging and borrowing what I could to open it and we came up with the name Bar Sport to go with it."

Since opening, Bar Sport Cannock has become one of the UK’s biggest sports bars, showing live sport all day, every day, with more than 60 HD and 3D TVs, and giant screens surrounded by authentic memorabillia, with a wide selection of food also served.

Mr Murray says the bar has been a great success since the day it opened and has evolved into a place that could be open 24 hours a day, depending on what sporting event was on, having been able to move on from just standard hours.

He explains: "When we first opened, it was only normal hours, so we'd be open from 10am to 11 at night, but now we find the key is that no matter what time the sport was on, we always ensure that we will show it live and we're dedicated to that.

"Sport always comes first and while we do put a lot of entertainment on, it's always been known that if you know something is live, we'll definitely show it and we've now got a 24-hour licence to show sport whenever.

"In the past, we had to apply to the courts to open for extra hours, but we can now open whatever time we want and I think that's our strength."

Mr Murray says the bar was also able to adapt and thrive during the Covid-19 pandemic as the team were able to extend the bar into the car park and put up shipping containers with TVs on them, allowing Bar Sport to have a winter and summer-themed outside area.

He adds: "As mad as it sounds, the pandemic was great for us as it meant we could push the outdoor area a bit further and we were probably one of the first venues that was ready for when restrictions were being lifted.

"When we were allowed to reopen, we had a full huge outdoor and fully-licenced bar area and we could fit more than 100 people in and we were always full from when we opened to whenever we had to close."

Bar Sport also has a tradition of putting on black tie events with its Premier Suite, which has seen interviews and audiences with virtually every living boxing champion, including Lennox Lewis and Marvin Hagler, as well as Rugby World Cup winner Martin Johnson.

Mr Murray describes the bar as a place where people can enjoy a good drink, with a range of craft ales and premium lagers, as well as what he claims is the biggest whisky collection in Staffordshire, a nod to his Scottish roots.

He says the fact that the bar caters for local people and offers a safe and fun environment also makes it special.

"I think we've catered for the locals for so long now and we offer a safe environment, which I think is key to any late night venue.

"We just offer good entertainment and we guarantee that we will have sport on no matter what time of the day or day of the week it is and I think that makes us a bit different to other bars.

"Some venues will have sport on, but also have a DJ, whereas they can come to us, get the full experience and have a drink while they watch sport."