It’s a time of expansion for professional women’s sports.

The WNBA and NWSL both added teams for the 2025 season, and plan to add two more next year – including the return of professional women’s basketball to Oregon.

It’s also expansion time for the famous Northeast Portland bar that only puts women’s sports on its TVs.

The Sports Bra announced Tuesday it will soon open franchises in Boston, Las Vegas, St. Louis and Indianapolis.

“The Sports Bra is more than just a place to watch the game — it’s a movement,” Sports Bra founder Jenny Nguyen said in a statement. “Our team spoke with hundreds of interested people about opening a franchise location, and we’ve met some incredible people along the way. These owner/operators are capable, enthusiastic, and deeply committed to The Bra’s mission.”

Nguyen opened the inaugural Sports Bra in 2022 with a shockingly simple mission: a place where women’s sports fans could gather to watch games. Nguyen reached out directly to professional leagues and content creators to be able to exclusively show women’s sports on the bar’s TV, making it the first known restaurant to do so.

The Sports Bra’s success has often served as an example of how demand for women’s sports is growing, especially in the Pacific Northwest. Last year, Portland was chosen as one of two cities to gain a WNBA expansion team set to start play in 2026.

Nguyen had announced last year that major investments would allow the concept to grow to other cities in the form of locally owned franchises. Opening dates are still being determined for the four new Sports Bra locations.

Nguyen and her Portland team will help support the new locations with things like setup and training. Practices from the Oregon location, such as buying from women-owned food and beverage distributors and offering vegan and gluten-free menu items, will continue at the franchises.

Each city welcoming a Sports Bra already has a professional women’s sports team. Las Vegas is home to the WNBA’s Aces, which won back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023. Indianapolis is home to the WNBA’s Indiana Fever, which picked up two fan favorites – Aliyah Boston from South Carolina and Caitlin Clark from Iowa – in recent drafts. St. Louis has a Women’s Football Alliance team, and Boston is set to welcome an NWSL team in 2026.

TV viewership for women’s sports has skyrocketed in recent years as leagues negotiate better deals with networks. In 2024, both the WNBA and NWSL reported record-breaking viewership numbers.

“There is no better moment than this to open these places,” Nguyen said.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/03/portland-sports-bra-womens-basketball-expansion-boston-las-vegas-st-louis-indianapolis/