Varsity was a student-focused pub chain operating in the United Kingdom. The name originates from annual university sports competitions. It entered administration in 2013. Coventry is the only remaining pub bearing the name Varsity which is now operated by Stonegate Pub Company.

History

The chain began in the mid-1990s. Its main competitor was

Scream Pubs Scream (formerly known as It's A Scream) was a student-oriented pub chain in the United Kingdom owned by the Stonegate Pub Company. The chain began in October 1995. History The pub chain was set up by brewers Bass, who called it, It's a Sc ...

. Varsity was more sports-orientated than It's A Scream. Varsity Wolverhampton – the first varsity bar in the chain – shut its doors in June 2012 after The University of Wolverhampton made a successful bid to the struggling Barracuda Group to purchase the building. It ceased trading in 2013.

Ownership

Wolverhampton and Dudley

Varsity was founded by

Wolverhampton & Dudley Marston's plc is a British pub and hotel operator. Founded by John Marston in 1834, it is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Marston's disposed of its brewing operations in 2020, selling the assets to a newly formed joint venture with the Ca ...

Barracuda Group

The Barracuda Group was formed in July 2000 by PPM Ventures, a private equity company that became

Silverfleet Capital Silverfleet Capital is a regionally focused European mid-market private equity firm. Silverfleet is an independent firm, owned by its partners, and invests on behalf of a diversified group of international institutional investors. Silverfleet Cap ...

. In September 2001 Barracuda Group bought fifty pubs from Wolverhampton & Dudley for £37.25 million, which included the 22 pubs of the Varsity chain. In June 2005, the Barracuda Group was sold for £262 million to

Charterhouse Capital Partners Charterhouse Capital Partners is a London based private equity investment firm focused on investing in European mid-market companies valued between €200m and €1.5bn. The company targets investments across the services, healthcare, specialis ...

. In August 2006 there were 36 Varsity bars. In October 2012, Barracuda was renamed The Bramwell Pub Company.

The Stonegate Pub Company

In October 2013, The Bramwell Pub Company went into administration. The Stonegate Pub Company bought 78 of the company's pubs including the Varsities in Lincoln and Coventry.

Operation

It operated the ''V Card'', one of the first loyalty cards, which allowed a cheaper price for some drinks, and allows better offers on some of the food deals.

Previous Estate

North West England

* Longsight, Manchester, near the

Elizabeth Gaskell Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (''née'' Stevenson; 29 September 1810 – 12 November 1865), often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer and short story writer. Her novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many st ...

campus of

Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester Metropolitan University is located in the centre of Manchester, England. The university has over 40,000 students and over 4,000 members of staff. It is home to four faculties (Arts and Humanities, Business and Law, Health and Educat ...

* Bolton, Churchgate *Church Street, Preston

North East England

* Sunderland, near the

University of Sunderland , mottoeng = Sweetly absorbing knowledge , established = 1901 - Sunderland Technical College1969 - Sunderland Polytechnic1992 - University of Sunderland (gained university status) , staff = , chancellor = Eme ...

, off the A1231

Yorkshire and the Humber

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into t ...

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...

Leeds Leeds () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the thi ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, on West Street, on the

Sheffield Supertram The Sheffield Supertram is a tram and tram-train network covering Sheffield and Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England. The infrastructure is owned by the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), with Stagecoach responsible for th ...

near the

University of Sheffield The University of Sheffield (informally Sheffield University or TUOS) is a public university, public research university in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its history traces back to the foundation of Sheffield Medical School in 1828, Firth C ...

(science and engineering departments)

East Midlands

* Leicester – two, on Friar Lane in the city centre, and London Road ( A6) towards the

University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_la ...

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Linco ...

* Loughborough

West Midlands

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed ...

, on Gibbet Hill Road, between the main

University of Warwick , mottoeng = Mind moves matter , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £7.0 million (2021) , budget = £698.2 million (202 ...

campus and

Westwood (Campus) Westwood is one of three campuses of the University of Warwick (the other two being the main campus and Gibbet Hill). Description It is a triangular shaped campus bordered by the houses on Charter Avenue and by Gibbet Hill Road, located to th ...

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 United ...

, at the

University of Wolverhampton The University of Wolverhampton is a public university located on four campuses across the West Midlands, Shropshire and Staffordshire in England. The roots of the university lie in the Wolverhampton Tradesmen's and Mechanics' Institute found ...

South West England

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east of t ...

South East England

Southampton Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...

– on London Road. Closed in 2016. * Southampton – on Portswood Broadway. Closed in 2013. *

Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north ...

Wales

* Aberystwyth *

Bangor Bangor or City of Bangor may refer to: Places Australia * Bangor, New South Wales * Bangor, Tasmania Canada * Bangor, Nova Scotia * Bangor, Saskatchewan * Bangor, Prince Edward Island United Kingdom Northern Ireland * Bangor, County Down ** ...

, near

Bangor University , former_names = University College of North Wales (1884–1996) University of Wales, Bangor (1996–2007) , image = File:Arms_of_Bangor_University.svg , image_size = 250px , caption = Arms ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

, near

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

Cardiff pubs
/ref> *

Roath Roath ( cy, Y Rhath) is a district and community to the north-east of the city centre of Cardiff, capital of Wales. There is no community council for the area which is mostly covered by the Plasnewydd electoral ward, and stretches from Adam ...

(Cardiff), off the

A469 The A469 is a road in south Wales. It links Cardiff and Caerphilly with Rhymney and the Heads of the Valleys Road (A465). See also * Transport in Cardiff * Transport in Wales Transport in Wales is heavily influenced by the countr ...

next to the railway ( Rhymney Line) * Swansea

References

External links

Stonegate Varsity

News items

Punch up outside Swansea pub in January 2011
{{authority control Companies based in Buckinghamshire Pub chains Stonegate Pub Company Universities in the United Kingdom Wycombe District