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New York Liberty fans know that Barclays Center is the place to be when the home team is in Brooklyn, but come away games, the party’s just getting started across the boroughs.
Throughout the city, a slew of new WNBA watch parties have united women’s sports fans (and soon-to-be) sports fans with the strong pull of community, female empowerment and a safe space to relax, drink and eat chicken tenders. Whether it’s Blue Haven South staff gleefully parading around the bar with bubble guns following a Liberty win, or a dating app-sponsored gathering at Fulton Hall, Liberty fans are centering their social schedules around away games. In a time when strangers rarely speak to each other at bars, these events are a space to mingle, celebrate and get a little rowdy.
“It’s fun to experience the game with other people,” says Jessica Mora, a 27-year-old in Crown Heights. She joined group chats and kept up with new friends via social media following a fun night out at a Liberty party. “There’s something about the energy of Liberty fans. Even if we don’t win, everyone’s super passionate, and people will strike up conversations with each other about players or plays. I think the team embodies the spirit of New York City and Brooklyn. I love showing up to support that.”
“When you attend a Liberty watch party, you belong. All of us belong.”
Of course, a New York City night out and fashion are inseparable, and Liberty fans deliver. Liberty seafoam green appears at parties in braids, nail art, sparkly tops, kicks, hand-crafted accessories and vintage Liberty gear. Ellie, the prodigious mascot, appears on plenty of apparel as well.
“The vibe is so positive. Honestly, there’s nothing like a watch party for a women’s sport,” says Kristy Boyce of FiDi. “Everyone’s happy to be there, respectful and exactly what I think a great fan should be. I always love to see what everyone’s wearing, Liberty fans have some awesome merch.”
For Nineth Diaz, a 32-year-old from Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, the contrast in attending women’s sports events versus men’s ones has drawn her to watch parties at the Bush, Ginger’s and more pop-up events.
“There is something special about being with fellow fans supporting women. Liberty fans are kind and welcoming,” Diaz says. “In this particular moment in history, [we] need to come together in safe spaces for belonging and community. That’s what it feels like when you attend a Liberty watch party. You belong. All of us belong… I have met some wonderful people at the watch parties, some have even become my friends and we can thank the NY Liberty for bringing us all together.”
“How dope is it that you can come to a space, meet a stranger and learn a ton from them in a two-hour game?”
The Bush is a particularly popular spot for Liberty fans to gather on game night.
“The Bush started hosting Liberty Watch parties in July 2024 because there was an influx of regulars who were looking for queer spaces to watch women’s sports in,” says Trae Higgs, events manager at the Bushwick lesbian bar. She heard from patrons that most sports bars weren’t even airing the games, and if they were, a misogynistic debate courtesy of a man sharing his feelings about women’s sports was likely part of the communal viewing experience.
Since last summer, the Bush has hosted over 40 women’s basketball watch parties, including events for Unrivaled, the off-season 3-on-3 league in which many Liberty stars play.
“The watch parties are a great camaraderie of queer sports lovers who are excited to watch the Liberty with other queers and sapphics. For the 2025 season, we’re an official Bar Network partner for the Liberty away games, so it’s been great having added promotion by the New York Liberty,” says Higgs. “What’s uniquely fun about our watch parties is the mix of experience between watchers. Often, the more veteran basketball fans will strike up convos with newer watchers and teach them some things. I think some folks think entering the sports world is super intimidating, but how dope is it that you can come to a space, meet a stranger and learn a ton from them in a two-hour game?”
And in addition to the education, there’s some good old lesbian fun.
“People are fascinated with how many lesbians are on the Liberty,” says Higgs. “I mean seriously, at some games people are shouting ‘LET’S GO LIBERTY LESBIANS’ when Stewie makes a fire assist to Tasha Cloud, or when JJ opens up a game with a three, or when Izzy and Tasha are on the court together, I could go on and on!”
Where to find Liberty watch parties in New York City
The New York Liberty’s bar network includes almost a dozen spots in Brooklyn and Manhattan, which are dedicated to showing away games. The list includes Rounder’s in Greenpoint, Uncle Barry’s in Park Slope and the soon-to-open Lower East Side women’s sports bar, Wilka’s.
The NYLiberty subreddit is another great resource to find game day watch parties.
Several groups also host pop-up game day events and watch parties across the city, including two that are soon to get places of their own: Blazers, a women’s sports bar slated to open in Williamsburg, and Athena Keke’s, a women’s sports bar opening in Fort Greene.