Meltdown Bar Sheffield: E-sports bar in iconic former Black Swan and Boardwalk site is closed down

It's game over for a popular Sheffield e-sports Bar in an iconic city venue, as bosses revealed it has closed down.

Meltdown Bar, on the corner of Snig Hill and Bank Street, has shut down after its lease for the building, which once housed the famous Black Swan and Boardwalk music venues, came to an end.

The company announced the closure with a statement saying it was closing down 'with a very heavy heart' but they hope to return to Sheffield at some point in the future.

The statement said: "Our current lease is expiring and we have at this time unfortunately been unable to negotiate an extension and must now prepare to vacate the venue next month.

"We do realise that this may come as a shock for you all and we are deeply sorry to be letting you down in this way. We know how much Meltdown means to our lovely community, it’s your home just as much as it ours.

"We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for visiting and supporting us throughout the last four and a half years through some very difficult times - we honestly didn't know if we would ever make it this far after what the last few years has thrown at us and we are forever grateful for your continued support throughout a global pandemic, the cost of living crisis, fuel crisis and much more."

They added that while their time at the Snig Hill venue was coming to an end, they were still exploring the possibility of returning' to the Sheffield landscape' at some point in the future.

Meltdown was described by the Welcome to Sheffield website as Sheffield’s first e-sports bar, where people could come to drink, play, watch streams and meet like-minded people.

It was part of a chain of similar bars both in the UK and internationally.

Meltdown took over a building which has been famous in Sheffield's music history for hosting some iconic names, including The Clash, the Sex Pistols and the Arctic Monkeys, as well as Sheffield singer Joe Cocker.

It has a plaque outside on the wall of the building marking its place in the city's musical history.