Düsseldorf is a fine football and drinking city – here are the best places to combine the two
Traditional Altbier bars, Irish pubs and cult Kneipen ensure that Düsseldorf’s central Altstadt is always busy after dark. Within the small pedestrianised area delineated by Mühlenstraße, Hunsrückenstraße, Bolkerstraße and Burgplatz, the intrepid barcrawler can lose many a night – and catch the game, too.
As the stadium is way north of town towards the airport, many fans stop off at a couple of kiosks on the Rheinbahn U78 line, done out in Fortuna red and serving Altbier in bottles. If you’ve got a little more time, it’s worth heading to the club’s old stadium, named after all-time Fortuna hero Paul Janes, where Bar95 is decked out in local football history.
bar95
Named after the foundation date of local team Fortuna Düsseldorf, Bar95 is located at the club’s old stadium, spiritual home and HQ of the Paul-Janes-Stadion.
It’s worth popping in if you’re curious about Fortuna’s history, with a giant photo of how the stadium looked in its heyday, all kinds of other team line-ups, player portraits (including one of all-time Fortuna great Paul Janes from 1940) and tasteful murals. Plus, last but not least, local Füchschen Alt beer.
The bar is in the Toni-Turek-Haus by the old stadium at Flinger Broich, with a club shop and ticket outlet alongside.
Bar95, Flinger Broich 87, 40235 Düsseldorf. Open Tue-Fri 5pm-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm.
irish pub bei fatty
Late-opening Irish Pub bei Fatty sits in bar central, next door but one to another main hostelry in town, Sutton’s. It ticks similar boxes, offering big-screen sports, pub grub, whiskies and whiskeys, Guinness, Magners, Newcastle Brown and Hop House 13. For a German brew, there’s Käuzle Urhell from Ochsenfurt, northern Bavaria.
Beneath a ceiling covered in football scarves, tables are turned towards the match action, otherwise a row of dartboards attracts the many regulars of a quiet night midweek. Tables and chairs set up outside allow you to watch Düsseldorf go by.
Irish Pub bei Fatty, Hunsrückstraße 13, 40213 Düsseldorf. Open Mon-Thur 3pm-3am, Fri & Sun noon-3am, Sat 11am-3am.
Mclaughlins
McLaughlins differs from the other Irish pubs in Düsseldorf in that it’s actually Irish. It’s located on a narrow Altstadt thoroughfare chockablock with bars, conveniently close to the taxi rank on Burgplatz, a home from home for members and followers of the city’s rugby and GAA teams, not to mention Celtic supporters.
While football dominates its comprehensive TV schedule, other sports also feature on the three big screens and five smaller ones, with live music and Sunday quiz nights also programmed. Private events can be staged in its Orchard winter garden, a conservatory area for 100 guests.
Düsseldorf’s own Füchschen Alt, Starnberger and Krombacher from Bavaria represent a strong selection of German draught options, along with Guinness, Kilkenny, Murphys and Magners, served from the long counter lined with bar stools.
McLaughlins, Kurze Straße 11, 40213 Düsseldorf. Open Mon-Thur 5pm-1am, Fri-Sat noon-3am, Sun noon-1am.
O'Reilly's
On a corner of Mutter-Ey-Straße, o’reilly’s is the Düsseldorf branch of this minichain of Euro Irish pubs also operating in prominent spots in Frankfurt, Brussels and Amsterdam. Here, local Schlösser Alt makes an appearance among the taps of Guinness, Kilkenny and Hop House 13, with whiskies, whiskeys and bourbons lining the back bar.
Over the course of Euro 2024, the full Irish breakfast is being served at weekends until 5pm, with regular main courses – burgers, buckets of wings, baked potatoes – available as usual. Open mic, quiz and karaoke nights dovetail with TV sports in the evenings, unless a major tournament takes priority.
o’reilly’s, Mutter-Ey-Straße 1, 40213 Düsseldorf. Open Mon-Thur 5pm-midnight, Fri 5pm-2am, Sat noon-2am, Sun noon-midnight.
sutton's irish pub
Red-fronted Sutton’s Irish Pub on Hunsrückenstraße has been serving pints and showing matches since Euro ’88, the last major tournament held in Düsseldorf. Football is still a major feature, with the upcoming schedule of TV games written out and posted up outside, where a scattering of tables overlooks this narrow Altstadt street.
Alongside the Guinness, Kilkenny and Magners, you’ll find Bitburger, local Frankenheim Alt and Franziskaner, while the whiskey, whisky and bourbon selection is extensive.
Noon opening allows you to get an early start, late closing, 3am weekdays, 5am weekends, means you can let loose long after the final whistle.
Sutton’s Irish Pub, Hunsrückenstraße 5, 40213 Düsseldorf. Open Mon-Thur noon-3am, Fri noon-5am, Sat 11am-5am, Sun 11am-3am.
trinkhalle
If you’re taking the Rheinbahn U78 line to Düsseldorf Stadium, you can do as many local fans do and stop off at a couple of Fortuna kiosks along the way. By the stop for Reeser Platz, Trinkhalle on Reeser Straße opens nice and early every day, 8am, and provides outside tables and sunshades for you to plonk down your bottle of Altbier and get supping.
A short walk down Scheibenstraße from the Nordstraße stop, the Fortuna-Büdchen beer kiosk (daily 9.30am-10pm) at Joseph-Beuys-Ufer 27 has the advantage of a river view, plus a fair range of beers alongside the popular Füchschen Alt. Decent bar snacks, too.
Trinkhalle, Reeser Straße 1C, 40474 Düsseldorf. Open daily 8am-11pm.
