Spurs run brought crowds back to San Antonio bars. World Cup may keep them.

The Spurs run to the NBA Finals didn’t just get hoops fans buzzing as the hometown team rolled up victories. Sports bars around the city were winners, too. Now, they’re hoping to continue their championship season boosted by fans cheering on their favorite teams in the FIFA World Cup – ,he world’s most-watched sporting event.

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The back-to-back tournaments could mark a turnaround for a business sector that’s struggled since the pandemic – and the Spurs got the ball rolling.

“Every small business owner understands that when the Spurs win, the city wins,” said James Santos, co-owner of Atlee’s Rally in St. Paul Square, a sports bar with a 26-foot-long LED video wall spanning the length of the bar. “The team brings out the best of the city.”

It brought out the best for sports bars, too.

Santos said May was the most profitable month ever for his bar, which opened in February 2025. Sales were 37% higher than the same month a year ago as fans lined up outside waiting to get in when Atlee’s Rally reached its 200-person capacity during the Spurs playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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Even with the wall-to-wall fans spending an average $35 to $40 on game days, Santos said he “cannot put a price” on the full impact of such fan fervor.

RELATED: Spurs fever hits San Antonio workplaces during NBA playoffs run

At Howdy, Sore Loser, a sports bar on Commerce Street downtown, co-owner Amber Hernandez said sales jumped 20% from April to May. On game days, the bar filled with about 400 customers racking up an average tab of $30 per person – $10 more than on typical days.

She said the excitement for the Spurs Finals run was “bringing life back” to the community and small businesses like hers.

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“I hope this momentum continues to the World Cup,” Hernandez said. “I imagine we will get people excited.”

The FIFA World Cup only happens every four years, and this year’s tournament is being hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. Hernandez said she hopes to attract fans with specific cocktail menus and drink specials. That strategy paid off during the NBA season, when Howdy, Sore Loser offered a combo of $12 for a beer pitcher and $7 for pizza during Spurs games.

Both Santos and Hernandez are hosting watch parties for every World Cup match, “no matter how early or late it is,” Santos said.

RELATED: FIFA World Cup Trophy makes stop in San Antonio ahead of summer matches

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River North Icehouse, a downtown sports bar that is also kid-friendly on weekends and game days, tripled its sales from May 2025, said Seth Klein, one of its three owners. It was the busiest month the bar has had since opening in July 2024.

“People are out and spending money, which is awesome because they weren’t only rooting for the Spurs but also helping the city,” Klein said.

The demand in his 10,000-square-foot facility – which has both indoor and outdoor spaces – has been so high that he hired six more bartenders and two more support staff, bringing his workforce to almost 30.

The icehouse was at capacity every Spurs game day, he said, a turnout he thinks will “definitely” translate into the summer as the World Cup continues. He and his business partners started planning their soccer tournament watch parties two months ago.

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“We’re ready,” Klein said. “We’re not just showing games, we’re throwing a party.”

Money flowing into bars and into the city

The economic impact of such events on the local economy is large, said Steve Nivin, chair of the economics department at St. Mary’s University. He pointed to an earlier study he conducted on the economic impact of the NCAA Final Four, which found a $440.6 million impact on the city of San Antonio – a tally he said the NBA Finals probably matched. Alcohol and restaurant sales figures for May won’t be available until early- to mid-July from the Texas Comptroller so it’s still too early to start tallying actual impacts.

For the World Cup, Nivin said the impact would be felt mostly in Dallas and Houston, which are hosting nine and seven tournament matches, respectively. Regardless, he said he knows “for a fact” that events of World Cup scale support small businesses “in a really big way.”

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Such a lift has been needed in Texas and across the U.S., where consumer habits shifted dramatically during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the changes, more people began going out earlier in the day and spending less overall. For the World Cup, though, the Associated Press reported, many U.S. states have OK’d later bar and restaurant hours both to help small business and improve fan experiences.

In San Antonio, bar owners said the comeback they started seeing during the Spurs run is continuing.

READ MORE: World Cup friendly match in San Antonio lets Texans participate without ‘breaking the bank’

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“It’s our time,” Santos said, referring to the increased popularity of local bars. Customers, too, say they found a new community during the Spurs’ surprising season.

“I get a sense of community from everyone there, but it’s also about the people behind the bar and the owners who truly make it special,” Stephen Gomez, 36, said of game nights at Atlee’s Rally. “I feel the most happy for the bar owners because this could otherwise be a dead time of year.”

He said he spends from $50 to $100 on game days, buying drinks for himself and his buddies. Frank Arcos, 33, another Atlee’s Rally customer, said the Spurs have “ramped up” his desire to be out with friends and he spends between $60 and $100.

And, Arcos said, he and his sports-fan friends will continue their community during the World Cup.

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Transitioning from basket to goal

As soon as the Spurs lost Game 5 to the New York Knicks last Saturday, San Antonio sports bars immediately shifted gears to make that happen.

“The transition is straight into the World Cup,” Santos said, with fan bases especially strong for the U.S., Mexico and Brazil men’s national teams among his clientele.

The business prospects became clear when he had a full house cheering Mexico during the team’s opening game last week, even though it was at 2:30 p.m. on a weekday. On Thursday, Mexico defeated Korea 1-0 in a match in Zapopan, Mexico. It will face Czechia on June 24 in Mexico City.

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The U.S. was set to play Australia on Friday in Seattle and Turkey on June 25 in Southern California. The bars are ready.

“The Spurs loss hit the city hard,” Santos said. “But I am very optimistic about people coming out.”

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This article originally published at Spurs run brought crowds back to San Antonio bars. World Cup may keep them..