Famous people's places / Detroit – Downtown
Lindell AC
Closed – archive entry · 2002
Widely credited as America's first sports bar, opened by the Butsicaris family in 1949 and a hangout for Detroit athletes and celebrities until it closed in 2002.
01 / The story of this place
Make time for these
Greek immigrant Meleti Butsicaris and his sons Johnny and Jimmy opened this bar in 1949 on the ground floor of the run-down Lindell Hotel at Cass and Bagley, decorating the walls with sports memorabilia in a way that's often credited as the country's first true sports bar concept. When the old Lindell Hotel was condemned, the bar relocated in 1963 to Cass Avenue at Michigan Avenue, where it became a magnet for Detroit Lions, Tigers and Red Wings players, and later a business partner in Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, who bought in with winnings from a wrestling match. Celebrities from Milton Berle to the Beatles, who reportedly stopped by after their Olympia Stadium show, mixed with local sportswriters and fans; and it was a co-owner of the Lindell who helped set up Ron LeFlore's legendary 1973 tryout with the Detroit Tigers while LeFlore was still in prison. The bar finally closed in 2002, and the building was later cleared to make way for the Rosa Parks Transit Center.
- Opened in 1949, often called America's first true sports bar
- Moved to Cass Avenue at Michigan Avenue in 1963
- Hangout for Detroit Lions, Tigers and Red Wings players
- Lions star Alex Karras became a co-owner
- Closed in 2002; site later cleared for the Rosa Parks Transit Center
Famous Detroiters
Famous people tied to this place 2
Lexicon entries for the people who lived, worked, performed or liked to spend time here.
- Alex Karras 1935–2012 · professional football player, actor
Related place
The sports bar at Cass and Michigan avenues where Karras was a part owner; his stake drew NFL scrutiny and a one-year suspension in 1963. Known as "America's first sports bar," it closed in 2002.
- Ron LeFlore born 1948 · baseball player, center fielder
Related place
The famous sports bar whose co-owner helped arrange LeFlore's tryout; it opened in 1949, moved to Cass and Michigan in 1963 and closed in 2002.
Sources & fact check · Checked: 2026-09-25
An independently written bilingual guide. This collection is not an attendance-based ranking.
03 / Events
Events at this place
Published events automatically linked from our event guide. Times are local to the venue.
We have no published upcoming events linked to this place yet. That does not mean the venue has no events; check its official calendar too.
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