Where to Watch the Portland Thorns in the NWSL Final on Saturday, October 29
The Sports Bra on NE Broadway will have plenty of TVs tuned to CBS for the NWSL championship as one of the Thorns’ official “pub partners.”
Image: Dalila Brent
The Portland Thorns face the Kansas City Current Saturday, October 29, in the National Women's Soccer League 2022 championship game at Audi Field in Washington, DC. The game will air live on CBS (KOIN-6), with the broadcast beginning at 4:30 p.m. and the kickoff scheduled for 5 p.m. Pacific time.
Six local bars are official "pub partners" for the team and will be hosting events starting at 4 p.m., with giveaways and raffles of items like scarves, signed jerseys, and gift cards:
- Grand Central Bowling: Enjoy the game soundtracked by the thwack of ball-meets-lane, with an arcade upstairs if you need to destress at halftime. 808 SE Morrison St
- Hopworks: Has new mom and semifinal hero Crystal Dunn taken her tyke to this family-friendly brewpub yet? It can only be a matter of time. 2944 SE Powell Blvd
- The Hostel Café: The eatery at the Northwest hostel (a onetime employer of Thorns defender, lit-mag editor, and players union officer Emily Menges) isn't just for travelers. 810 NW Glisan St
- Mad Greek Deli: Cheer on 2022's league MVP, Portland forward Sophia Smith, over souvlaki, feta fries, and more. 1740 E Burnside St
- Prost!: Outdoor seating and the adjacent food cart pod are an added bonus at this German beer destination. 4237 N Mississippi Ave
- The Sports Bra: Even if it weren't an official pub partner, this all-women's-sports-all-the-time Sullivan's Gulch spot would be mobbed. 2512 NE Broadway
Not at one of the official spots but still hoping to watch the game? Recall that soccer haven the Toffee Club is open once more (hurray!), and at least one Portland Monthly editor has been known to catch a game from the stadium seating at Jackie's, or on the bar's sweet rooftop patio with screens galore. The rare network broadcast of women's team sporting event should make it easy to catch the game anywhere—as opposed to hoping the bar you're in happens to have a Paramount Plus subscription or can sort out a Twitch feed, which is how Thorns fans had to catch most NWSL games during the regular season.
In terms of competition for screens, there's no Blazer game Saturday, but other NBA games will overlap with the NWSL final, as will Game 2 of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Philadelphia Phillies (but no Mariners, so it's dead to us in the Northwest) and about a million college football games (let's hope the Ducks' game at Cal is over by then). So stay away from Philly hangouts and football spots if you're hoping for soccer on the telly. But if you're at a bar that has no good reason not to be showing a national championship game featuring one of Portland's three major league sports teams, channel your inner Hooks from Police Academy (RIP, Marion Ramsay!) and assertively suggest a switch to CBS.
It's the fourth finals appearance for the Thorns, who won the title in 2013 and 2017. A previous version of the Current, FC Kansas City, won in 2014 and 2015, before becoming the Utah Royals and then returning to its original hometown in 2021 in a team sale. FCKC was the original home of Portland defender Becky Sauerbrunn, and the Current has several former Thorns on its roster, including standout goalkeeper Adrianna Franch.
