Tip Tuesday: ESPN Club

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!

This week, I wanted to highlight an often overlooked dining option at Walt Disney World that may be the closest thing to nirvana for sports fans - the ESPN Club!

Located on the far eastern side of the boardwalk (closest to Epcot) is the ESPN Club.  This is a restaurant and bar that serves your typical sports bar fare from nachos to buffalo wings to hot dogs and hamburgers.  There are three sections - the SportsCentral main dining area, the Sidelines Bar and the Yard, which is a gift shop and arcade.

What makes this very different from your hometown sports bar is this little thing called ESPN.  That's right - the restaurant is a show.  Often the cast members will have camera going inside and will interview guests about sports topics.  The live events take place at different times, so you never know when you might find yourself on camera.  Sometimes sports celebrities will stop by, so keep your camera handy.

Beyond the live events, the ESPN Club is a fantastic place to catch the game, and watch another game, and another game and yet another game.  In all the ESPN Club has more than 100 monitors displaying more than 30 different channels.  In the center of the SportsCentral room is a 108-square-foot screen!  Talk about real-life sports!

I've spent many an afternoon watching baseball, football and soccer at the ESPN Club -- and I'm not alone.  On days when major sporting events are taking place, be prepared for a long wait. 

Why the wait?  Well, the ESPN Club doesn't take ADR's (Advance Dining Reservations).  Yep - all walk-ups.  Locals will flock to the ESPN Club on gameday, so it's not unusual to have a wait time of more than an hour (and sometimes a lot more than an hour) to get a table in either the SportsCentral room or the Sidelines Bar.

Here's a little tip -- the bar has seating areas too.  Being a bar, it's bar-style seating with smaller tables, but you can still order from the complete menu.  If the line for the SportsCentral room is pretty long, see if you can get a table at the bar - often the line's much shorter.  There are plenty of televisions there as well -- just not the jumbo screen.

The ESPN Club is a fun place for lunch or dinner even when there's not a huge game on.  We've often been able to walk right in for an early lunch around 11:30 a.m. or noon. 

One other tidbit about the ESPN Club -- no takeouts.  So if you're staying at the Boardwalk, unfortunately you won't be able to get a basket of dingers to take back to the room.  Sorry.

After lunch or dinner - take a moment to browse the Yard for some ESPN merchandise (though the selection is pretty limited -- if you really want ESPN stuff, I suggest the Clubhouse over at ESPN Wide World of Sports).

So check out the ESPN Club on your next trip - it's a great place to catch the game!

ESPN RISE games start this weekend at Disney's Wide World of Sports

ESPN RISE and Disney’s Wide World of Sports have developed a new weeklong, multi-sport event called the “ESPN RISE Games”. The ESPN RISE Games, which will feature elite and competitive channel sports events, will be presented by Target. The ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target will take place July 19-25, 2009 at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex, the nation’s leading multi-sport venue for amateur and professional sports, in suburban Orlando, Fla.

The ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target will be anchored by three elite high school sports events: the AAU 17-under Boys Basketball Super Showcase presented by Champion®, the Under Armour High School Softball All-American game and ESPN RISE’s newly developed, elite high school football event Champion® Gridiron Kings. Additional sponsors for the event will include POWERADE, the events exclusive beverage provider.

The weeklong event will also feature competitive channel youth sports – baseball (10U, 11U and 12U), basketball (12U and 14U), field hockey (U14, U16 and U19) and track & field (12-14 and 15-18). The ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target is expected to host 4,000 student athletes.

“Creating events like the ESPN RISE Games provides us with a great opportunity to work with our various partners to offer student athletes, looking to hone their skills, the resources and inspiration that can be utilized to aide in their continued development,” said James Brown, senior vice president, ESPN RISE. “We hope that the events we are planning will motivate them to elevate their collective games, taking them all one more step closer to achieving their individual goals.”

The ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target is in line with the strategy for the ESPN re-branding of the Disney sports complex, which will create a one-of-a-kind, immersive experience for athletes and fans.

“The ESPN RISE Games builds on the wide range of nationally-recognized youth and amateur sports events we host at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex,” said Mike Millay, Disney's Director of Sports Events. “Through the increased collaboration between Disney and ESPN, we look forward to creating more marquee events and transformational sports experiences at our sports complex that athletes, coaches and spectators can’t get anywhere else.”

ESPN RISE GAMES ELITE EVENT DETAILS:
AAU 17-under Boys Basketball Super Showcase presented by Champion® is part of the AAU National Championships held at the Disney sports complex and features marquee 17-under club teams from across the country. The event includes two days of pool play and a single-elimination tournament. The tournament is a breeding ground for future NBA stars including Amare Stoudemire, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade, as well as collegiate phenoms such as Tyler Hansbrough and JJ Redick. July 20-25.

Under Armour High School Softball All-American game will feature 30 of the top high school All-Star players in the nation divided into two squads. Players are selected by a committee of high school softball experts from ESPN RISE. July 19-21.

Champion® Gridiron Kings is an elite high school football event that features the best players in the game’s seven skill positions – quarterback, running back, tight end, wide receiver, linebacker, cornerback and safety. The event includes performance training, position specific training, skills challenges and a 7-on-7 competition. July 23-25.

Team enrollment for the open division baseball, basketball, field hockey and track & field programs are available. Additional information on the ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target is available at ESPNRISEGames.com.