Picture this: it's 100+ degrees on July 4th at the first-ever concert being held at Q2 stadium, the…read moreiconic annual Willie Nelson's 4th of July Picnic that runs for 12 blistering hours from 11a to 11p. For reasons that make no sense to any experienced summer festival-goer, the Q2 powers-that-be decided to make this a "no re-entry" event, meaning that attendees are basically locked in the stadium with very few options for relief from the heat. Thank heaven for PointsBet Sports Bar!
PointsBet Austin is located inside of Q2 stadium on the north end near the Zebra Gate, up some stairs just to your right as you enter the gate. They have cold air-conditioning, at least one phone recharging station, a few table games, seating for at least 50 people, and standing room for a couple hundred others. Plus, there's a huge horseshoe bar serving plenty of canned and mixed beverages. The whole north wall is floor-to-ceiling windows, providing plenty of natural light. Lastly, there are 18 flatscreens around the walls showing various sporting events and during our concert, a couple were streaming a live view of the concert stage.
As expected, prices were "high" (like everything else in Austin these days), but they were in line with pricing available at the other beverage stands outside in the stadium, so we didn't pay any more than we would have out there for the same drink.
According to their website, PointsBet opens 3 hours before soccer matches on regular Q2 game days, and it's one of the few air-conditioned places where non-VIP attendees can get a break from the goings-on outside.