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Ireland’s Four Courts named ‘America’s Best Soccer Bar’ in nationwide contest

By Dan Egitto
Ireland's Four Courts (via Ireland's Four Courts/Facebook)

An iconic Irish pub in Courthouse has been crowned champion in a nationwide competition to name the nation’s best soccer bar.

Ireland’s Four Courts (2051 Wilson Blvd) beat out competition from around the country in an online voting contest organized by the soccer media company Men in Blazers. The selection process for America’s Best Soccer Bar included thousands of votes and hundreds of nominees from all 50 states.

Four Courts Managing Partner Dave Cahill said the award holds special significance as the United States will host most of the FIFA World Cup this summer.

“This recognition belongs to the loyal soccer supporters who gather early on weekends and have made the pub their home for many years,” Cahill told ARLnow. “We are looking forward to celebrating this award with them.”

Men in Blazers will be hosting a live podcast recording at Ireland’s Four Courts on Tuesday, April 21.

“The American soccer bar is something singular and special, they’re little embassies of the global game tucked into every corner of this country,” the event description says. “Places where Saturday mornings start early, allegiances run deep, and strangers become family over a shared badge, a shared groan, or a shared moment of magic.”

“They are where the sport has taken root, grown, and flourished, and none embody that more than Ireland’s Four Courts,” it continues.

The voting contest for America’s Best Soccer Bar took several months. Four Courts was listed in the top 10 back in December.

A stalwart in the Arlington sports bar scene, the watering hole is uniquely positioned as perhaps the only local bar that keeps up with the rigors of an international soccer schedule — one that often features early morning starts and long days.

The Irish pub, which serves as a bar for supporters of seven different European teams, regularly broadcasts each of the games from the English Premier League.

Four Courts also brings a touch of that international flair to its menu, offering “Irish Favorites” menu items like shepherd’s pie and fish and chips, imported beers like Guinness and Kilkenny, and even hosting a Whiskey Club centered around the popular European spirit.

Earlier this month, the bar revived the popular local tradition of the Four Courts Four Miler, a pre-St. Patrick’s Day race that takes runners down and back up a steep hill nearby.

About the Author

  • Dan Egitto is an editor and reporter at ARLnow. Originally from Central Florida, he graduated from Duke University and previously reported at the Palatka Daily News in Florida and the Vallejo Times-Herald in California. Dan joined ARLnow in January 2024.