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Among the most energetic spots on a Tuesday night in the East End's Brick Lane isn't a dining spot or a streetwear brand pop-up, it's a chess club – or rather a chess club-nightclub combination, to be exact.

Knight Club represents the unlikely fusion between the classic game and London's fervent evening entertainment scene. It was started by a young entrepreneur, in his late twenties, who began his initial chess club in the summer of 2023 at a more intimate bar in Aldgate, not too far from the current location at a popular cafe on Brick Lane.

“I wanted to make chess clubs for individuals who share my background and people my age,” he explained. “Typically, chess is only placed in environments that are dominated by older people, which isn't inclusive enough.”

On the first night, there were only 8 boards shared by sixteen people. Now, a “good night” at the weekly Knight Club will attract approximately two hundred eighty people.

At first glance, Knight Club seems closer to a DJ event than a chess club. Mixed drinks are flowing and music is playing, but the chessboards on every table are not just decorative or there as a gimmick: they are all in use and encircled by a line of spectators eagerly anticipating for their chance to play.

One regular, 24, has frequented the club often for the past four months. “I possessed little understanding of chess before my first visit, and the initial occasion I ever played, I competed in a game against a expert player. That was a quick victory, but it made me fascinated to learn and keep playing chess,” she noted.

“This gathering is about half networking and 50% people genuinely wishing to play chess … It's a pleasant way to decompress, which avoids going to a typical nightspot to see others my generation.”

An Activity Reborn: The Ancient Game in the Modern Age

Lately, chess has been cemented in the societal spirit of the times. The popularity of online chess expanded rapidly throughout the global health crisis, making it one of the fastest-growing online games globally. Across media, the streaming series The Queen’s Gambit, as well as Sally Rooney’s recent novel a literary work, have created a certain iconography surrounding the game, which has attracted a new wave of players.

However a great deal of this recent appeal of the chess club isn't necessarily about the intricacies of the game; instead, it is the simplicity of social interaction that it enables, by pulling up a seat and engaging with someone who may be a total stranger.

“It is a great clever disguise,” remarked Jonah Freud, co-founder of a local venue in the city, a bookstore, library, cafe and bar, which has organized a well-attended chess club every Wednesday since it opened several years back. Freud’s objective is to “remove chess from its elite status and transform it into similar to pool in a casual pub”.

“It's a really simple vehicle to meet people. It kind of removes the weight of the necessity of small talk away from socializing with people. One can do the uncomfortable part of introducing yourself and chatting to someone over a game instead of with no shared activity around it.”

Growing the Community: Chess Nights Beyond the Capital

Elsewhere in the UK, Chesscafé is a regular chess night held at York’s Cafe, just outside the downtown area. “We found that people are seeking places where one can socialize, interact and have a fun evening beyond going to a bar or nightclub,” stated its creator and coordinator, Karan Singh, 21.

Together with his friend a partner, also young, he bought chessboards, created flyers and began the chess club in January, during his last year of college. In less than a year, Singh reported Chesscafé has grown to draw more than 100 young participants to its gatherings.

“Such a venue has a particular connotation associated with it, about it seeming quiet. Our approach is to go the contrary way; it's a social get-together with chess as part of it,” he said.

Learning and Engaging: An Alternative Cohort of Chess Enthusiasts

For many, chess clubs are an entry point to the game. One participant, 27, is picking up how to participate in chess with fellow attenders of the weekly event at the venue. She became curious in the game was sparked after an enjoyable evening dancing and engaging in chess at one of the club's events.

“It's a unique idea, but it works,” she commented. “It encourages in-person exchanges rather than digital pastimes. It is a no-cost third space to meet strangers. It is welcoming, one doesn't have to necessarily be skilled at chess.”

She humorously likened the trendiness of chess with young people to the facade of the “ostentatious intellectual”, an effort to feign braininess while projecting the appearance of “hipness”. Whether the chess trend has cultivated a authentic interest in the sport isn't something she is quite convinced by. “It is a positive trend, but it’s largely a fad,” she observed. “When you're playing against opponents who are really serious about it, it quickly becomes less enjoyable.”

Serious Gaming and Community

It might seem like a bit of fun and games for those aiming to employ a chessboard as a networking tool, but serious players certainly have their role, albeit away from the dancefloor.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, 22, who helps running the club,says that increasingly competitive players have formed a league table. “People who are in the league will play each other, we will progress to early rounds, advanced stages, and then we'll finally have a champion.”

A dedicated player, 23, is a competitive player and chess instructor. He joined the competition for about a twelve months and participates at the club nearly every week. “This is a nice alternative to engaging in intense chess; it provides a feeling of belonging,” he said.

“It is interesting to observe how it evolves into more of a communal pastime, because in the past the sole individuals who played chess were those who rarely socialize; they simply stayed home. It's typically only two people competing on a game board …

“What appeals to me about this place is that one isn't actually playing against the digital opponent, you're engaging with real people.”