‘The next generation’: Why couple wants to create Kansas City’s first women’s sports bar

If all goes according to plan, Kansas City will soon have its very own women’s sports bar.

Omaha transplants Monica Brady and Rachel Glenn, who are married, recently took over the lease at 107 W. Ninth St. (The space was formerly home to Banksia, which earlier this summer moved to a bigger location downtown .) They plan to open The Dub , which they are calling “Kansas City’s first sports bar dedicated to prioritizing women’s sports,” by the end of the year.

The Star recently spoke to Brady about the rise of women’s athletics, what it means to be a women’s sports bar and their plans for the space.

When people hear “women’s sports bar,” they might think of a bar for women that shows a variety of sports, or they might think of a bar for everybody that only shows women’s sports. Which is it?

Brady : It’s kind of both. Our goal is to prioritize women’s sports. So, that would mean things like KC Current, the WNBA, and then a lot of more niche sports that have been rising in popularity — women’s pro rugby, women’s pro hockey, women’s pro volleyball, track and field, collegiate sports. And then there are some smaller local teams that broadcast their games on YouTube, so we’ll have some of that, too.

But if the Chiefs are on, or if the Super Bowl’s on, we’ll be showing the game. We also plan to host some educational sessions where if you don’t know the rules of football, you can come in and learn.

So, I’d say we want men who are fans of women’s sports to feel comfortable, and we want women to feel comfortable asking questions about sports they might not be familiar with.

What are your backgrounds? Why’d you want to do this?

I’m from Denver, and my wife (Rachel) was born and raised in Omaha. We’d been in Omaha together since 2019, and then last year she got a job with Kansas City Public Schools, so we moved to KC.

My background is in sales and customer service, but we both worked in hospitality in college. For the past few years the idea had been rattling around in my head to open something women’s-focused, especially with KC Current coming to town and the general fever pitch women’s sports has been reaching.

The concept has been cropping up in a few other cities.

Yes. There’s the Sports Bra in Portland (Oregon), which is kind of the O.G. It opened in 2022, and they’re small, just about 50 seats, very intimate. Lots of wood and jerseys on the wall.

Then there’s Rough and Tumble in Seattle, which is more of a larger sports bar atmosphere. They show all kinds of sports but prioritize women’s. It’s fairly rowdy.

And then in Minneapolis, they just opened A Bar of Their Own , which I visited in June. I walked in and immediately started crying. It was just so overwhelming to be in a space so similar to the one I’ve been dreaming of. It holds about 60, has a lot of memorabilia, and a “wall of fame” where former athletes and broadcasters sign their name to the wall. They even have some KC Current stuff in there.

So, those are kind of the pioneers. But there are several more, like us, that are part of what I consider the next generation. There are similar places opening soon in Denver, Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, San Francisco. And a lot of us are on the same group chat talking on a regular basis about how to bring these places to life.

You’ve been doing pop-ups as kind of a lead-up to the opening.

Yes, we’ve been at No Other Pub, Big Rip Brewing, Gael’s, the Drunken Worm. It’s a way to partner with local bars, spread awareness, sell some merch and have everybody watch a game together. We’re planning to do a few more in October and November for Current games and WNBA games. (Check their Instagram, @thedubkc , for updates.) We’ve also launched a Kickstarter to help raise funds to get The Dub open.

Talk about what you plan to do with the space.

So, it’s two rooms and a patio. The patio is set back off Ninth Street a little bit, to the west. The bar is on the slightly higher level, and then there will be a ramp that leads down to the lower seating area, where there’ll be a mix of high-top and low-top tables. It’ll be a bright, open space with a lot of color and artwork and plenty of TVs. And there will be a space toward the back that used to be the kitchen at Banksia — we’ll use that for overflow and for private events.

We won’t have a large wood bar. We won’t have neon beer signs. A lot of sports bars, you feel like you’re entering a cave. We want to be lighter and brighter than that.

Food?

We haven’t finalized the menu yet, but it will be hot sandwiches, flatbreads, nachos. But no burgers, no fries.

Hours?

Also haven’t finalized those yet, but we are thinking Wednesday through Sunday. We’re saying we’ll be open by the end of the year, assuming the permitting process with the city goes smoothly.