Scotland's best sports bar named with snooker, pool, darts and live football every week

Whether you're looking for a good meal with family or a fun night out with friends, you're guaranteed to have a great time
RIGHT ON CUE Scotland's best sports bar named with snooker, pool, darts and live football every week
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
THE BEST sports bar in Scotland has been named - and it has darts, a snooker table, a pool table, and shows live football every week.
The bustling bar in Glasgow is loved by locals and sports stars alike, and it scooped a top award at a prestigious awards ceremony.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
3
The Q Club in Glasgow scooped Best Sports Bar
Credit: GOOGLE MAPS
3
As well as showing live football it also has snooker, pool and darts
Credit: Getty
The Q Club is located on St George's Road, in the heart of the city centre, and offers a little bit of something for every sports fan.
And it won Best Sports Bar at the prestigious Scottish Hospitality Awards 2025, which recognise and celebrate the best of the industry from around the country.
It is an annual event that highlights the very best in hotels, restaurants, bars, spas, and other sectors.
This year, the winners were announced at an elegant ceremony that was held at the Marriott Hotel in Glasgow on Wednesday.
And The Q Club impressed judges with its incredible range of sports on offer as well as its delicious food and drinks.
Whether you're looking for a good meal with family or a fun night out with friends, you're guaranteed to have a great time.
Bosses at The Q Club shared the news of the award on social media this week.
The post on Facebook read: "Best Sports Bar 2025 Award.
"This would not be possible without all the staff and members, we can't thank you enough".
Loyal followers flocked to the comments to congratulate the team on the huge win.
I tried restaurant crowned best in Scotland - it was full of surprises
One person said: "Well done from a great team of staff thoroughly deserved".
Another added: "Congrats to all".
Someone else wrote: "Brilliant!!! Well deserved!!!"
While a fourth posted: "Congratulations everyone involved".
And a fifth chimed in: "Well done and congratulations to everyone".
Irfan Younis, spokesperson for The 8th Scottish Hospitality Awards 2025, prasied all of the winners at the event this week.
They said: 'We're proud to once again get to showcase the remarkable talent and exceptional standards within Scotland's vibrant hospitality industry.
"The people shortlisted for these awards have consistently demonstrated excellence, innovation, and dedication in their respective categories, setting the benchmark for quality and service within the Scottish hospitality industry.
"We want to congratulate all of our winners on their incredible
accomplishments.'

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Scottish Sun

2 hours ago

• Scottish Sun

‘Defending my spot' – Oban Elliott driven by fear of return to life before Dana White issued UFC deal ahead of Baku bout

The Welshman has gone a perfect 3-0 inside the octagon GANGSTER'S PARADISE 'Defending my spot' – Oban Elliott driven by fear of return to life before Dana White issued UFC deal ahead of Baku bout Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) OBAN ELLIOT may have established himself as a mainstay in the UFC, but the Welsh welterweight is refusing to rest on his laurels. 2024 was a year to remember for the pride of Wales, who fulfilled his lifelong dream of competing in the promised land of mixed martial arts. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 8 Life has been plain sailing for Welshman Oban Elliott since he won a UFC contract on the Contenders Series Credit: GETTY 8 The 27-year-old made his octagon bow last February and has been on a tear Credit: GETTY 8 The Welshman went a perfect 3-0 in the space of nine busy months Credit: GETTY 8 But he's refusing to rest on his laurels as he fears returning to the life he lived before making it to the big show Credit: GETTY And he entered the promotion with a bang, going a perfect 3-0 in just under nine life-changing months. Elliott, who is poised to make an assault on the top 15 this year, has come a long way from working night shift on the railways in Merthyr Tydfil and cleaning the grill at Nando's to pay the bills and supplement his training. His feet may be firmly in the UFC door, but the fear of one day having to return to the life he worked so hard to escape is as much his driving force as winning a world title. In an exclusive interview with SunSport, 'The Welsh Gangster' said: "I'm just so glad it worked out, man. I'm so glad. "And just for me, it just meant that much more, you know? To get here and do it. I didn't care for anything else, I didn't. "There was nothing else that interested me in life. And that's probably dark when you look like that, but it worked out. "When I got that UFC contract is when I relaxed and when I could smile without something in the back of my head saying, 'Yeah, but you're not there yet.' "And now I'm like, 'No, I'm here. I'm home. And just the fact that it all worked out, thank f***ing God. It just meant that much to me." JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS 8 Oban Elliott scored the biggest win of his career against Bassil Hafez at UFC 309 last November Credit: GETTY 8 The stunning stoppage at MSG is one of the proudest moments of Elliott's life to date Credit: GETTY The memory of working on the railways and at Nando's is still fresh for Elliott, who believes he already has a belt adorned on him as a result of all the blood, sweat and tears he's shed trying to achieve his dream. "To be settled in and to be living this life now, it's a new challenge in itself," Elliott candidly admitted. "Because now I just think about defending it." Brit UFC star Oban Elliot explains how working nightshift on railway tracks fortified his mindset He continued: "I'm just thinking about defending my spot. There's a belt over my shoulder and I'm defending my belt every fight. "Every training session, I'm defending my belt and that is it. "And maybe somewhere along the line, Dana is gonna wrap another one around me. But I will always have my one. "That's the way I see all of this. So it's just a case of defending this spot and defending this life that I now live." The highlight of Elliott's UFC career came at Madison Square Garden last November in the form of a beautifully set-up third-round knockout of Bassil Hafez. And that moment, which earned the 27-year-old a life-changing $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, will likely only be topped when he becomes the undisputed king of the welterweights. "To get that knockout was just the best moment ever," Elliot said. "For me, everything that I wanted in life happened in that third round. "That little fake with my feet going outside of his right leg, throwing the shot and there he was, right in the middle of the Monster can. it's just a case of defending this spot and defending this life that I now live." Oban Elliot "And I look up. The cry was going nuts, the pose. 'Who's the man in New York City, brother?' "How lucky am I? That's how I feel. That is just unreal. Like, look at that. Jesus Christ, that happened to me. "I've heard people say, 'You work hard for this?' People work hard for things and they fall short of their dreams and it happens to people. "But in that moment, in the cage that night, all my hard work paid off. And I got that for the rest of my life. So I'm the proudest guy ever." Elliott's latest outing will take place this evening in a land far, far away from Merthyr Tydfil - Baku. Fellow Dana White's Contenders Series contract winner Seok-hyeon Ko stands between Elliott and a four-fight win streak. And if he notches it in similarly spectacular fashion as he did his last victory, it will put him on the precipice of tangling with the elite of the talent-rich 170lbs division. "This guy is a tough, tough man," Elliot said of the South Korean. " And he's coming to win. 8 Oban Elliott returns to the octagon on Saturday night for a showdown with South Korea's Seok-Hyeon Ko Credit: Getty 8 A win in the Baku bust-up will see Elliott move to a perfect 4-0 inside the octagon Credit: GETTY "And he is going to come to fight. Take the UFC out and take the nonsense out of all of it, this is a man versus a man who are going to fight to the death in the cage. "He has all my respect, all my attention and it's going to be a tough fight for both of us. "May we get out of their cage healthy, and the better man will win. "I think the better guy is me, so we'll see if I'm wrong." He added: "After this fight, [I want to get] two more [fights in] hopefully and keep my imaginary belt over my shoulder. "The belt that I had before I even put the gloves on - in my mind. "In my mind, I've been a champion long before any of this came to light in my life. "So I'm just [going to] keep defending my spot, keep making my family proud and keep doing my best. And if I'm doing that, I'm winning." Catch Oban Elliott this weekend at UFC® FIGHT NIGHT: HILL vs. ROUNTREE JR on TNT Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.

The Herald Scotland

3 hours ago

• The Herald Scotland

Watching someone from your part of the world thrive is deeply moving

A lad from Oban. A former shinty player. A Nike athlete now carving his name into golf's global conversation. It's the kind of story that sticks with you not just because of the golf, but because of what it represents. In a world of meticulously planned coaching academies, perfect-weather practice facilities, and high-performance pathways, here's a reminder that greatness can also come from gritty winter mornings in Argyll, from muddy shinty pitches, and from a love of sport that runs deep in the blood. For young Scottish players especially those still hacking around their local course or just starting to believe that sport might offer them something more Bob MacIntyre is the kind of beacon they need. We talk about representation a lot, but this is what it really looks like: a local lad making it all the way, not by being plucked from a golf school pipeline, but through sheer ability, determination, and love for the game. He makes it feel possible. And that sense of possibility is powerful. You can't fake the vicarious buzz of watching someone who sounds like you, who shares your sporting DNA, competing against the game's biggest names and coming out with his head held high. It plants a seed not of entitlement, but of belief. Now, don't get me wrong I'm under no illusion I'll ever swing it like Bob Mac. Even before two fractured ribs put me on the sidelines, my golf was more grit than grace. But watching him at the U.S. Open this week did something to me. It made me want to get the club back in my hand as soon as I can. I won't play like him, but that's not the point. The point is drive and his performance has given me plenty of that. When you're carrying injuries, or trying to rewire your body after major setbacks, motivation can waver. You lose a bit of rhythm, then maybe a bit of confidence, and before you know it the clubs start gathering dust. But then someone like Bob reminds you what it feels like that hunger to test yourself, to be part of something bigger than the scorecard. MacIntyre's background in shinty one of the toughest, most unforgiving sports going makes his rise even more impressive. There's a certain rawness to players who come through that route. It's not just the physicality, though that certainly helps. It's the mindset. The willingness to scrap, to graft, to find a way when conditions are against you. That's the Scottish sporting mentality at its best and golf, a game that can test your mental fortitude to the limits thrives seeing people like Bob almost win the US open. There's no question this moment is a huge boost for Scottish golf. We've had greats before, legends like Sandy Lyle and Colin Montgomerie, but it's been a while since a young Scot made this much noise on such a big stage. With so many distractions pulling at young athletes and with golf sometimes struggling to compete with flashier, faster-moving sports Bob's performance is a jolt of electricity. It reminds kids across Scotland that their story doesn't have to stay small. That their swing, honed on windy fairways or parkland courses battered by rain, can take them somewhere. It also reminds us those later to the game, those playing with physical limits, those just trying to keep going that there's still plenty of joy to be found in chasing the game. Even when you're not breaking 80. Even when your ribs are protesting. Even when your body doesn't quite do what it used to. I've played a handful of rounds in recent months, still finding my feet on the course, still learning what my body will tolerate. And though progress is slow, the game is slowly taking hold of me. Watching the U.S. Open with Bob Mac in the mix, wasn't just entertainment, it was fuel, and the reminder to be where your feet are. Not just for me, but for thousands of us across Scotland who've ever dared to imagine ourselves in the game. MacIntyre has made it real. He's turned potential into performance. He's shown that a wee lad from Oban can go toe-to-toe with the world's best and do it with humility, humour, and that quiet Highland resilience. For all the data and the swing speeds and the coaching gadgets that dominate the modern game, sometimes what you really need is a story like this, one that cuts through the noise and lands right in the gut. A reminder that the game is still ours, and the dream is still alive. So, thank you, Bob. You've done more than play well. You've reminded a nation and at least one sore-ribbed golfer watching from the sidelines just how far this game can take us.

Scotsman

3 hours ago

• Scotsman

How Austin MacPhee became 'perfect fit' for Portugal as Aston Villa coach claims Scottish first

Former Hearts and Scotland coach helps Ronaldo and co to Nations League title Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... When news emerged that former Scotland set-piece coach Austin MacPhee had been recruited by Portugal following an international sabbatical due to his father's ill health, the initial reaction was to wonder whether he had signed up for the easiest job in the world – or should that be least enviable? Showing Ronaldo how to take free kicks? You're having a laugh, surely? Now, having spoken with the man in question in the aftermath of Portugal's Nations League triumph nearly a fortnight ago, the first thing to point out is that MacPhee is not solely a set-piece coach, although this is now his specialist subject. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He is 'assistant head coach' to Roberto Martinez, a title he shares with Ricardo Carvalho in a three-pronged frontline coaching staff. The perhaps unlikely trio have produced almost instant results while at the same time earning some 'historia' for Portugal for good measure. They are the first country to win the Nations League twice, something the tee shirts Ronaldo and co pulled over their heads after defeating Spain with a 100 per cent success rate in the penalty shootout two Sundays ago referenced. 'Campeoes Faz Historia' read the slogan on their chests - champions make history. Portugal players and coaches celebrate with the Nations League trophy after defeating Spain in the final. Pic: Portuguese Football Federation | Portuguese Football Federation Such an achievement isn't to be sniffed at of course. However, what really counts as true football heritage, as the kids like to say, is the status now claimed by MacPhee as the first Scottish male to win a senior international football tournament. Ever. Put that on a tee shirt, why don't you. It's unlikely MacPhee will do that although he did wear his medal at breakfast with his family one morning for a laugh and then forgot to take it off as he went out to take out the bins, to funny looks from the neighbours. 'It is very heavy,' he reports. It's good to know such details given Scotland are a million miles away from winning international tournaments that aren't played in Japan, sponsored by a Japanese beer and involve just three countries, including the mighty Bulgaria. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Simply qualifying for a World Cup for the first time in nearly 30 years will be the aim come this Autumn. Nothing is guaranteed in terms of Portugal, who are in a group with Republic of Ireland, Armenia and Hungary, but having beaten Germany – in Germany – and then Spain to claim the Nations League title, hopes are understandably high. Not simply to qualify. They have designs on winning the damn thing. 'Since I came into the camp for the Nations League it's been, 'Can we practice winning the World Cup?' says MacPhee. 'Right from my first conversation with Roberto Martinez it was about can we all contribute to trying to win the World Cup? That is what he said to the players: 'We have a week here (in Germany) to practice what it's like'. 'The trust you have in the depth of the Portuguese squad and the fact you have an icon in the world leading the team in the summer shows the kind of special generation that we have got and the absolute belief.' Cristiano Ronaldo and his Portugal teammates give their attention to assistant coach Austin MacPhee at the tactics board. Pic: Portuguese Football Federation | Portuguese Football Federation From Forfar failure to Ronaldo coach Ah yes, the 40-year-old phenomenon that is Ronaldo. A potentially tricky if talented customer, one might imagine. And yet he and MacPhee, who at 45 is nearer the veteran superstar's age than anyone else in the Portugal camp, appears to have already struck up a good rapport. The Scot by his own admission is a 'failed Forfar Athletic footballer', although does that even matter these days anymore? Martinez's own career was moderate. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As for Ronaldo, there's an interesting piece of footage from the win over Spain, when the already substituted superstar is seen joining MacPhee on the edge of the technical area – recipe for disaster, perhaps? Memories stirred of the Euro 2016 final between Portugal and France, when some felt the injured Ronaldo had been disrespectful to Fernando Santos by being so animated on the sidelines, at one stage even standing in front of the head coach while issuing instructions to his teammates. In the case of his interaction with MacPhee, however, it seemed clear he was adhering to the chain of command. There was no sense of oneupmanship. 'He was just talking about the delivery, it was a free kick – whether Bruno (Fernandes) should shoot or Bruno should cross,' recalls MacPhee. 'There was no right answer in this particular situation.' MacPhee is already learning Spanish to help aid dialogue with his manager at Aston Villa, Unai Emery, so he might wait a while before downloading the teach yourself Portuguese app on Duolingo. He won't want to confuse things. Still, he has been witness to the force of Ronaldo's stirring dressing- room addresses, which, naturally, are delivered in Portuguese. 'You can see that when he speaks in the changing room after the game before the manager, it is very powerful,' he says. 'Also how he is in terms of respect for everyone. It's the little things. Everyone wears the same kit. Everyone sits down for dinner. No one stands up to get their dinner until everyone has sat down, including the kit man and bus driver, everyone. That has very much been driven by him and Roberto.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Austin MacPhee imparts some advice to Cristiano Ronaldo during a Portugal training session. Pic: Portuguese Football Federation | Portuguese Football Federation Scottish set piece influence MacPhee's influence can also already be traced. Eagle-eyed set-piece afficionados might have recognised an old routine in extra-time of the final against Spain, when both teams were striving for a winner while locked at 2-2. Neither side were able to find a goal but Portugal came close with a free-kick routine that Hearts and Northern Ireland have already employed to good effect when MacPhee was on the staff. For Fernandes, Vitinha and Nuno Mendes, read Sean Clare, Jake Mulraney and Steven Naismith, who combined to score the second goal for Hearts in a 2-1 win over Kilmarnock at Rugby Park in February 2019. The trick is successfully relaying a message to players of different skill - and perhaps intelligence - levels. The concept of space is the same in the Scottish lower tiers as it is on the highest rung of international football. Providing players can recognise this, MacPhee's own limited playing credentials are not a factor. "I go back to what I learned at St Mirren,' he says, with reference to his time coaching under Danny Lennon, who he also helped at Cowdenbeath. 'Every player only asks themselves one question, 'Can this person help me?' Of course, you have to be able to engage – set pieces is an area of football that is perceived as less entertaining. It is more enjoyable to play five v fives than it is to do set pieces. But sometimes an engaging physics teacher can make physics more fun. And a bad PE teacher can manage to make PE not very enjoyable, when it should be enjoyable. That's more or less my philosophy.' Fast forward to many of the world's finest footballers frolicking with MacPhee at the Allianz Arena as they celebrated Portugal's latest international crown. This was an altogether happier, not to say cathartic, experience for the Scot, who nearly a year earlier was in the dugout for Scotland's 5-1 humbling by Germany (Scotland's goal came from a set piece) in the opening game of Euro 2024, when Ryan Porteous was sent off just before half-time. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It helps when you keep eleven players on the field, as Portugal did. It also helps when four members of their squad had won the Champions League with Paris-Saint Germain the week before, which highlights the company MacPhee is now keeping. Portugal head coach Roberto Martinez. Cr: SNS Group. | SNS Group How Martinez found his 'perfect fit' While the Fifer has now earned the right to be considered among the best in the world at what he does, circumstances do often play a part. Thomas Tuchel's appointment as England manager started a chain reaction that saw MacPhee approached by Martinez. Anthony Barry, who worked with Martinez at both Belgium and Portugal, was poached by Tuchel, with their relationship dating to Chelsea days. Martinez was now a coach short. It didn't seem impossible that Martinez and MacPhee might already know each other – the Portugal manager enjoyed a brief spell at Motherwell, after all, and is married to a Scot, Beth. It turns out they didn't, which seems novel in a world where positions are often offered on the basis of pre-existing relationships. Of course, Martinez was aware of MacPhee, who has overseen set pieces at Villa for four years, but his name emerged following 'an open search', which is how the Portugal manager himself described it to The Scotsman. 'We highlighted from a very technical point which areas we wanted the new staff member to focus on,' he explained via text message as he flew to the United States, where he is a member of Fifa's technical study group at the Club World Cup. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We used AI to find the best performing team in Europe in those technical areas - and the answer was Aston Villa,' he added. The league tables spell this out. Villa currently have the best record in the Premier League for defending corners: they concede just one every 97 on average when the world average is one every 29. They lead the way in Europe's top five leagues in the past two seasons for goals scored from set-pieces, with 45. Martinez explained that they then started to find out more about MacPhee's career and 'his human quality'. Very quickly, he added, 'he became our perfect fit'. Some further investigation uncovered the fact that the only goal Portugal had conceded from a set play in their Nations League campaign last year had come against Scotland, when MacPhee was still involved. 'It made sense very quickly,' writes Martinez. He was appointed in February, before a 5-3 aggregate win over Denmark in the Nations League semi-final. Aston Villa set-piece specialist Austin MacPhee joined Roberto Martinez's backroom team with Portugal in February. (Photo by Nick Potts/PA Wire) Written in the stars Paramount above all this in the process was an improvement in MacPhee's father's health, which meant taking on further responsibilities became possible. Concerns regarding his dad's cancer diagnosis had led to him stepping away from Scotland in September. 'He has a letter saying he should be dead in November,' says MacPhee. 'He is now very much alive, swimming up and down the pool in the Fairmont (outside St Andrews) and playing golf and going to the pub and following Dunfermline – telling me about the poker champion who has bought Dunfermline.' Understandably, Villa were very keen for MacPhee to broaden his horizons and make some new, talented connections in the process. As he puts it, 'you have a relationship with some of the best players in the world who you might want one day to sign'. There could be no downsides. It also seemed written in the stars. When he was offered the post, MacPhee's son Dino, who was once on the books at both Hibs and Hearts, had just accepted a place at the University of Lisbon, where he will start studying business and entrepreneurship in the coming academic year. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad MacPhee couldn't say yes to Martinez quickly enough. It helped knowing that the majority of the Portuguese squad, including Ronaldo while in his second spell at Manchester United, had already felt the impact of Villa's set-piece proficiency, as have many of Portugal's England-based players. It's hard not to be slightly wowed by MacPhee's trajectory. Eleven years ago he had just joined up with Northern Ireland, having met Michael O'Neill at an Aberdeen game. He wasn't yet known as a set-piece coach per se but when 11 of the 16 goals Northern Ireland scored en route to qualifying for Euro 2016 were from set-pieces, it was clear something was changing in football. Now those such as Bernardo Silva are eager to reply to messages about MacPhee's influence. On the day he was named among the substitutes as Manchester City opened their Club World Cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Moroccan side Wydad AC, Silva responded by text to a request for some information on how the players have enjoyed working with MacPhee. 'As you know, set pieces play a major part in football nowadays,' he replied before taking his place on the bench. 'We are creating a lot of problems for our rivals since he joined, so honestly it has been a pleasure for all of us'. He added that the 'message and ideas are very clear - simple but at the same time very effective'. He referenced a photo that circulated on social media showing Silva pulling pints next to MacPhee following the Nations League victory. 'The one thing to say,' he added with a laughing emoji, 'is that he's not very good at pulling pints – I am better!' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Former Scotland set piece coach Austin MacPhee with captain Andy Robertson during the match against Switzerland at Euro 2024. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group) | SNS Group / SFA Switching from Scotland MacPhee, who played football in Romania, Japan and the United States, is not finding it strange switching from Scotland, where his heart clearly lies as a former Tartan Army member who travelled to support the team at France 98 in a Renault 5. 'I have been seven years with Northern Ireland as well,' he says. 'I think you become connected with a group of people with a common identity and a common goal. Of course, it is different. I am not Portuguese. But I think you can care more but you don't necessarily try any harder is the best way I can describe it. "I tried as hard as I could for Northern Ireland, I tried my best. I tried to do the same with Scotland. In the big moments there is slightly more euphoria and in the bad times there is slightly more hurt, probably, because you are thinking of all your family and friends from Scotland, there is an extra thing. It's slightly different. 'One of my dreams as a wee boy was to go to a World Cup,' he continues. 'I have never done that. I've experienced the Champions League, the Conference League, the Euros. This season we are playing in the Europa League. I've done the Nations League, worked abroad. The World Cup is the missing experience, the one I've not had.'