TRENDING Drew Rasmussen starting Game 5 NFL trade deadline proposals WNBA Finals schedule fiasco Anthony Edwards injury impact Week 8 fantasy trade tips Story by Story by Women’s sports bar owners furious about WNBA Finals schedule change Apr 14, 2025; New York, New York, USA; WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert talks to the media before the 2025 WNBA Draft at The Shed at Hudson Yards. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images Qwame Skinner Wed, October 28, 2026 at 11:11 PM UTC · 3 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement On Monday, the WNBA announced that it'd be rescheduling Game 6 of the Finals from 8 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, in order to allow the Atlanta Dream to play the game at the 17,000-seat State Farm Arena rather than the 3,500-seat Gateway Center. Clarissa Flores, the owner of Level Sporting Club, a Chicago-based women's sports bar, took to Instagram to share her surprise.
"A WNBA Finals game at 12:30 p.m. on a Thursday. Are you serious?" Flores posted.
"We spend all year telling people to show up for women's basketball, then on one of the biggest stages in the world, we make it even harder for them to show up. We're putting our money, our livelihoods, our future behind women's sports. … We need the people making the decisions to match that same commitment that we're giving," she added.
Flores wasn't the only one surprised by the reschedule, especially since the game could be a potential clincher, as the Golden State Valkyries take a 3-2 series lead into Thursday's game. Women's sports bar owners were especially taken aback by the move, and while they understand the logistical difficulties the league faces, they spoke with Front Office Sports about how the WNBA's decision negatively impacts their businesses and the type of message it sends to fans.
"To have this be what might be the last game of the Finals feels like such a slap in the face, and shows that they really don't care about us being able to watch the game," Chandler Robertson, owner of Blazers in Brooklyn, New York, said.
Jen Barnes, who owns Rough & Tumble in Seattle and typically brings in $10,000 to $15,000 between Rough & Tumble's two locations for a weeknight WNBA Finals game, isn't even sure if she'll be able to open for the game.
"We normally open at 4 p.m. on weekdays. We're pulling in different schedules as it is for these games, but my kitchen team is not able to be on-site for a 9:30 a.m. tip-off," Barnes said.
Jenny Nguyen of The Sports Bra in Portland, Oregon, touched on the impact the decision might have on television viewership.
"When you schedule a Finals game at a time that keeps people from watching, it absolutely will hurt the numbers," Nguyen said. "Then those numbers risk being used as evidence that the audience isn't there. That's a frustrating cycle, and it's one that everyone in women's AND men's sports should be working together to break."
As unhappy as she is with the WNBA's move, Flores will be opening on a weekday morning for the first time ever.
"Having to open at 11, lunchtime for a Game 6 is one of the most absurd things I've ever heard," she said. "But we are going to do it because we're going to stand up for women's sports."
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Source: Sports
