Where to Watch the World Cup in Orange County
- Joel Beers
- 6 minutes ago
- 13 min read
From biergartens and butcher shops to food halls and fan-filled bars, watching the games is a countywide cultural crawl.
The World Cup is many things: a massive business enterprise, political event and global media spectacle. This year's tournament, which begins June 11 and runs for 39 days, is the biggest ever, with the field expanded from 32 to 48 nations, a record 104 matches and three host countries: Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Upwards of 6 billion people will watch on televisions and smartphones, while an estimated 5 million are expected to attend matches in person.
The event will come tantalizingly close to Orange County. SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, roughly 12 miles from the county's northwest corner in Cypress, will host eight matches, including the United States' opener against Paraguay on June 12 and its final group-stage match against Turkey on June 25, along with two knockout-round games and a semifinal.
Orange County has no venues listed on FIFA's official Watch World Cup website and the closest of Los Angeles County's 10 fan zones are in Downey and Whittier Narrows (although the developers behind OC Vibe just announced it will host a watch party for the July 19 final at the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center).
But that hardly means local fans will struggle to find a place to watch. Any bar or restaurant with a television will likely be showing matches, and it isn't hard to imagine restaurants, barber shops, liquor stores and other businesses tuning in when the United States, Mexico or another heavily supported nation takes the field.
But this story isn't about finding a television.
For all the attention paid to money, politics and the sheer scope of the event (one report refers to it as “the largest commercial and technical mobilization ever undertaken in the name of sport logistics,” the World Cup remains a celebration of the world's most popular sport and the cultures, traditions and national identities represented by the countries competing in it. And Orange County, one of the nation's most diverse regions, offers plenty of opportunities to experience that side of the tournament.
So where can you watch the World Cup while also getting a taste of the participating nations – whether by cheering alongside fans with ties to those countries or sampling their food and drink?
This list is a good place to start.
Anaheim Packing District, 440 S. Anaheim Blvd, Anaheim
You don’t automatically think of televised sports when you think of a food hall, even an upscale-ish one housed in the shell of a citrus packing house built in 1919. And yes, TVs are at a premium in this venue, with fewer than 10 among the approximately 30 vendors and communal seating areas in the 42,000-square-foot two-level main dining hall.
But one of them is a large projector screen that drops from the ceiling at Hammer Bar, a second-floor craft cocktail lounge with an industrial aesthetic. Another sits inside BXCR (pronounced “boxcar”), a ground-floor speakeasy built into a converted railroad boxcar. There is only one TV behind the bar, and seating for its weekly Saturday morning English Premier League watch parties is tight, but it draws a loyal, vocal soccer crowd.
Still, it’s the dining that most fully embodies the World Cup spirit. Few places in Orange County reflect the tournament’s international reach quite like the Anaheim Packing House. Its vendors span multiple culinary traditions from Morocco, England, France, Japan and Mexico to countries not represented in this year’s tournament, including China, Syria and Vietnam.
And then there is Canada – yes, Canada – with poutine on the menu at The Kroft, the comfort-food outpost specializing in global mashups. The Quebec-born dish of fries, cheese curds and gravy appears in variations such as birria poutine and wagyu smash fries, alongside a traditional version that can be topped with mushrooms, pickled onions, bacon or a fried egg. In a World Cup built on global collision and cultural cross-pollination, it feels less like a novelty than a preview: the world reassembled one gravy-soaked plate at a time.
With its open seating policy allowing guests to purchase food from one vendor and eat it anywhere in the hall you can, in a sense, eat your way through the World Cup at a single venue.
The Source OC, 6940 Beach Blvd., Buena Park
If Team Korea is your bag, there’s no better place to immerse yourself in K-culture than its epicenter in Buena Park. According to an Instagram account connected to the Source, three giant screens will air the three South Korea games in the group stage: June 11 versus Czechia; June 18 versus Mexico; and June 24 versus South Africa.
With about 30 dining options at the Source OC offering everything from Korean BBQ and fried chicken to seafood and noodles – as well as several non-Korean options including Mexican and Japanese – there’s plenty to choose from, not to mention all the entertainment and shopping options at the Source and along the 1.5 mile stretch north on Beach Boulevard comprising Buena Park’s Korea Town.
OC MENA Festival @ the OC Fairgrounds, 88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, July 19-21
The OC MENA Festival, held at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, is billed as the first large-scale Middle Eastern and North African cultural festival in Orange County, bringing together food, music, art and performance from across a broad region that includes several World Cup qualifiers such as Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. (MENA-adjacent countries Turkey and Iran also qualified for the tournament.)
Designed as both a diaspora gathering space and a public cultural festival, it will transform the OC Fairgrounds into a concentrated expression of regional identity – shawarma stands beside live DJs, traditional sweets alongside contemporary art installations – offering a snapshot of the cultural diversity that defines both the MENA region and, in its own way, the World Cup itself.
As for watching the games, the festival will include a designated watch area with a large outdoor screen, and an on-site lounge featuring multiple TVs for select matches.
The only drawback is its limited run: just three days, June 19–21. During that window, only a handful of the region’s teams will be in action. Morocco plays Scotland on June 19; Tunisia faces Japan on June 20; and Saudi Arabia meets Spain, while Egypt plays New Zealand on June 21. (Turkey opens against Paraguay on June 19, and Iran faces Belgium on June 21.)
Kababji, a Lebanese restaurant in Anaheim's Little Arabia, will show World Cup games on its four flat-screen TVs. Photos by Joel Beers, Culture OC
Kababji Resto-Lounge, 513 S. Brookhurst St., Anaheim
With the plentiful hookah lounges, markets, cafes and restaurants on Brookhurst Street between Ball Road and Broadway in Anaheim, there is no shortage of Middle Eastern culture to immerse yourself in. But the best place to watch teams from the region is probably this Lebanese restaurant/lounge, which is accessible from an alley just south of the Afghan Shams, which it shares a kitchen with. Four large TVs provide accessible viewing and the vibe is far more informal. One possible drawback: While there are plenty of food options, from kebab and baba ghanoush to khafta and taboule, no alcohol is served.
Also of note in the Little Arabia district is El Mahroosa at 930 S. Brookhurst St., an Egyptian restaurant and hookah lounge with ample TV screens and an unpretentious ambiance.
Lola Gaspar, 211 W. 2nd St., Santa Ana
Lola Gaspar, which serves Mexican/Latin-inspired fare and is one of the few Michelin-recommended restaurants in the county, isn’t a World Cup bar in any official sense. It doesn’t need to be. On nights when Spain, Mexico or any Latin American country plays – or when the tournament’s rhythms spill into Orange County – its mix of mezcal, antojitos, tacos and small plates, along with its tightly packed tables, turns the Artist Village into a kind of unofficial fan zone, where the match is absorbed into the room rather than broadcast from it.
Madero 1899, 111 N. Harbor Blvd., Fullerton
Formerly Matador Cantina, the restaurant has evolved into a full-service Mexican kitchen and bar, with a menu that runs from gourmet tacos, enchiladas and fajitas to street-inspired dishes such as mussels and ceviche, alongside a broad lineup of tequila- and mezcal-forward cocktails. It balances sit-down dining suitable for families and groups with a sports bar energy: There are six TV screens behind the main bar, two more in a smaller lounge near the entrance, two in a covered patio area, and another 10 in a second bar space, making it equally built for watching the game and staying put for whatever the night turns into.
Though its seating area is small, El Gaucho Meat Market on State College Boulevard and La Palma Avenue in Anaheim is an epicenter for Latin America soccer, featuring a grocery story and deli offering South American food and drink and a soccer-saturated vibe. Photo by Joel Beers, Culture OC
El Gaucho Meat Market, 847 S. State College Blvd., Anaheim
Its owner is a Paraguayan native, and the place is part Argentine butcher shop, part Latin American grocery, deli and wine market. It is also, pound for pound, the most intense soccer hangout in Orange County. The seating area holds only a couple dozen people and there are just a handful of TVs, but the panoramic soccer murals on the walls make it feel like a South American supporters’ club squeezed into a storefront.
You can order fresh empanadas and a range of sandwiches from the deli, from choripán — the classic Argentine sausage sandwich — to chivito, Uruguay’s signature steak sandwich. Wash it down with South American beer or wine from the market while watching defending champion Argentina try to retain its World Cup crown, five-time champion Brazil chase its first title since 2002, Colombia return after missing the 2022 tournament, Paraguay make its first appearance since 2010, Ecuador attempt to advance beyond the group stage for only the second time, and two-time champion Uruguay seek its first title since 1950.
Like many of the venues on this list, you’ll want to arrive early. It fills up fast.
Mozambique, 1740 S. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach
The opening match of the World Cup at noon June 11 will be on most every local soccer fan’s radar as it involves Mexico. But considering El Tri’s opponent is South Africa, there may not be a better spot in O.C. to watch it than this Laguna Beach restaurant, as its speciality is South African cuisine. The restaurant overlooks the ocean, but there is one room inside that is more of a sport lounge, where you can watch the game while dining on peri-peri spice-accented dishes and wood-fired meats and seafood like chicken, ribs and prawns paired with bold sauces and shareable plates that echo the region’s Portuguese-influenced coastal cooking of the nation that hosted the World Cup in 2016.
Also in Laguna Beach is The Ranch at Laguna Beach, which is serving a series of cocktails related to the World Cup, with drinks inspired by eight different countries. 31106 Coast Highway, Laguna Beach.
While the Biergarten at Old World in Huntington Beach will air every World Cup match in its expansive bars and restaurant inside and its outside courtyard, reservations are strongly recommended for all Germany and USA matches. Photo by Joel Beers, Culture OC
Old World Huntington Beach, 7561 Center Ave., Huntington Beach
This Bavarian-style village complex – centered on a large indoor-outdoor biergarten and ringed by restaurants and vendors that reinforce its faux-European aesthetic – is also an overt soccer hub, where flags, jerseys and match schedules feel like part of the architecture rather than incidental décor. On major tournament days it skews heavily German – bratwurst, schnitzel, pretzels and steins built for long stretches of match-watching – but screens throughout the property also draw Argentina, England, Mexico and other international fan bases, turning the biergarten courtyards and interior spaces into a sprawling communal viewing space.
Even in its soccer-first identity, it isn’t culturally narrow. The surrounding marketplace folds in other influences, from German bakeries to French deli-style counters and other international shops, reinforcing the sense of a transplanted European village where global soccer feels entirely at home.
Take note: More than 30 TVs saturate the indoor and outdoor biergarten areas, including four large projection screens, but the place fills quickly for European, Argentinian, Mexico and U.S. matches, making advance reservations strongly recommended.
Sofra Urbana, 17098 Magnolia St., Fountain Valley
With Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia qualifying for the World Cup this year, the Balkans are well represented. And there isn’t an eatery in the county that better reflects the cuisine of this complex, history-heavy region than Sofra Urbana. It’s a Bosnian restaurant, quite cozy – seating maybe 24 people – but it offers several TV screens, which you can watch while you partake of Bosnian coffee and culinary fare like ćevapi (Balkan sausages made with halal meat), burek (flaky meat-, cheese- or vegetable-filled pastry), and an array of pizzas, many gluten-free.
Brussels Bistro, 222 Forest Ave., Laguna Beach218 Avenida Del Mar, San Clemente
As the name implies, this is a Belgian hangout with plenty of its most famous export (beer) and food that, according to its website, is “inspired by the heart of Belgian and European cuisine.” That includes everything from Belgian fries, Belgian onion soup and Belgian meatballs to bitterballen (Dutch-style beef croquettes) and pâté de campagne (French country pate). As an added incentive, during its June 15 contest against Egypt, which begins at noon, stadium-style hot dogs and Belgian fries are on the house at the San Clemente location.
Fuoco Pizzeria Napoletana, 101 N. Harbor Blvd., Fullerton
One of the oddities of World Cup 2026 is that even as the field expands to 48 teams – welcoming first-time participants from relatively small nations like Cape Verde and Curaçao – one of the true powers of European soccer, four-time champion Italy, has failed to qualify for the third consecutive time. Italy's team, the Azzurri’s, absence may be painful for regulars at this Neapolitan pizza restaurant (which was once mentioned by The Washington Post in a story about the best pizza in America), but it won’t stop the venue from airing the matches on the four screens lining its northern wall while firing up its homemade wood-burning oven to produce a rotating menu of roughly two dozen pizzas, with toppings ranging from black truffles to salami.
Mickey’s Irish Pub, 100 N. Harbor Blvd., Fullerton
Directly across the street from Fuoco is this Irish pub, located where Florentine’s held court on the corner of Harbor Boulevard and Commonwealth Avenue. How authentic it is is debatable, especially compared with old stalwarts like the Harp Inn in Costa Mesa and O’Malley’s on Main in Seal Beach, although it does serve bangers and mash, shepherd’s pie, corned beef, Irish stew along with more staid pub grub, and has an excellent selection of Irish, Scotch and English whiskey/whisky.
But there’s no denying its soccer chops: As the rest of downtown Fullerton was still shaking the sleep out of its eyes one recent Saturday morning, Mickey’s was standing-room only for the Champions League final featuring Arsenal and PSG, with an energy that was infectious.
PHOTO 1: Macallan's Irish Pub is located in the bustling Brea Downtown shopping and entertainment district, located just north of the Brea Mall. PHOTO 2: Built during COVID, the outdoor seating area at the Olde Ship in Fullerton will feature a large screen for patrons to watch the World Cup in front of its classic double-decker English bus. Photos by Joel Beers, Culture OC
While Ireland didn’t qualify for the World Cup, England and Scotland did, and here’s a list of other establishments with a British/Irish connection:
O’Malley’s on Main in Seal Beach is a Chelsea bar and its owners are enormous soccer aficionados. Chapter One in downtown Santa Ana is more of a gastropub than a pub, but it’s home base for Arsenal in Orange County; Killarney’s in Huntington Beach is the home base of Manchester United fans; you can’t go wrong with the aforementioned Harp Inn or Macallan’s Public House in Brea.
And then there’s The Olde Ship in Fullerton, which is much smaller than its now-closed location in Santa Ana, but features the most thorough British food menu anywhere in the county. There are two projector screens inside, and plans to project on a screen covering a double-decker English bus in the outdoor seating area built during COVID are in the works.
Danny K’s Billiards and Sports Bar, 1096 N. Main St., Orange
What’s a traditional sports bar doing on this list? Well, considering that the modern sports bar was kind of born in Long Beach in the late 1970s, and that most sports bars peddle a thoroughly American cuisine of burgers, sandwiches, chicken wings and such, how can the best sports bar in Orange County, which opened in 1994, not be on this list?
It doesn’t look like much from the outside, blending into a stretch of low-slung retail and auto-oriented businesses along a busy commercial corridor. But inside, it opens up into something far larger: a sprawling room of pool tables, a wraparound bar, and wall-to-wall TVs that turn it into a local command center on big sports nights.
It’s not a culinary destination so much as a functional one, with a menu of classic American sports-bar staples – burgers, wings, sandwiches, nachos – built for staying in place while keeping one eye on soccer and the other on any number of other sports contests cycling across the screens.
Other American sports bars of note (although this is only a very small number) include: the Hive in Anaheim Hills, which is hosting a watch party for the U.S. Paraguay contest June 13: the unpretentious Keno’s Sports Bar and Grill near the 91 freeway and Imperial Highway in Anaheim; Big’s on State College Boulevard and Chapman Avenue in Fullerton; Lopez & Lefty’s, a welcoming locals bar and Mexican cantina near the 5 Freeway and Harbor Boulevard in Anaheim; Darcy’s Tartan Room in Garden Grove; the Wild Goose Tavern in Costa Mesa; Daily’s Sports Grill in Rancho Santa Margarita, which has 27 TV screens; and the San Juan Hills Sports Bar and Grill in San Juan Capistrano, which comes with a golf course.
