FILE – In this Friday, Aug. 12, 2016, file photo, United States’ Megan Rapinoe, right, kicks the ball past Sweden’s Lisa Dahlkvist during a quarterfinal match of the women’s Olympic soccer tournament in Brasilia. Rapinoe knelt during the national anthem Sunday, Sept. 4, before the Seattle Reign’s game against the Chicago Red Stars “in a little nod” to NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
After a mere five months as the first and only women’s sports bar in Australia, Sydney’s Ladies League on Oxford Street is no more.
The bar closed its doors for the last time on New Year’s Day.
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The decision to “call stumps,” as they say at the end of a cricket match Down Under, was taken “with a heavy heart,” said owner Rose Valente.
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On Wednesday, Valente took to the bar’s Instagram page — since switched to “private” — to announce the end of business at the short-lived drinking and dining venue.
“As a women’s sports bar, we excelled,” the post began. “Anyone who attended a Matildas, Sydney FC, Grand Final etc game day at our venue, knows what a show we can put on.
“Unfortunately, it is outside of live games, that we felt the struggle as much as many hospitality venues in this economic climate,” Valente lamented.
“While we knew going in cost of living pressures have impacted how patrons spend, this is something we wanted to do for women’s sports visibility,” she continued.
“We knew we had a fantastic product on offer, but unfortunately as a small business, we couldn’t hold on any longer to try any new approaches.”
The pint-sized, two-story property, which held just 80 patrons in a bar below and a viewing lounge upstairs, was located in the heart of Darlinghurst on Oxford Street, a popular LGBTQ+ area in Sydney.
Valente parlayed a women’s sports website of the same name into the brick-and-mortar outpost, with financial support from loyal readers to help get the ladies’ sports hangout up and running.
But the clock ran out on the IRL dream.
Valente said her team “had full belief we would not be in this position at this early stage,” adding that she and the staff had “nothing but gratitude” for customers and supporters.
“We hope this doesn’t discourage anyone from opening a similar concept in the future,” Valente said. “The support we felt from the community was amazing.”
“It’s unfortunately a hard reality of how people are choosing to spend their money at this stage,” Valente added. “Thank you each and every one who has visited us or showed support online.”
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