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One of the most energetic locations on a weekday evening in the East End's famous street isn't a dining spot or a urban fashion brand pop-up, it's a chess club – or rather a chess and nightlife combination, to be exact.

This unique venue embodies the unlikely crossover between the classic game and the city's fervent nightlife scene. It was started by Yusuf Ntahilaja, in his late twenties, who began his first chess club in the summer of 2023 at a smaller bar in Aldgate, not too far from the current location at Café 1001 on Brick Lane.

“I wanted to make chess clubs for individuals who look like me and those my age,” he said. “Usually, chess is only put in spaces that are dominated by senior individuals, which isn't inclusive enough.”

On the first night, there were only 8 boards between sixteen people. Now, a “successful evening” at the weekly club event will attract about two hundred eighty people.

At first glance, the venue feels closer to a DJ event than a traditional chess meeting. Cocktails are being served and tunes is in the air, but the game boards on every table are not just ornamental or there as a gimmick: they are all occupied and surrounded by a queue of spectators waiting for their chance to play.

One regular, 24, has been attending Knight Club regularly for the last four months. “I had little understanding of chess before my first visit, and the initial occasion I tried it, I played a game against a grandmaster. That was a swift win, but it left me fascinated to study and continue enjoying chess,” she said.

“This gathering is about 50% networking and half participants actually wishing to play chess … It's a nice way to decompress, which doesn't involve going to a club to see others my age.”

A Game Revitalized: The Ancient Game in the Contemporary Age

Lately, chess has been firmly established in the societal spirit of the times. Its appeal of online chess proliferated during the pandemic, establishing it as one of the fastest-growing internet pastimes globally. Across media, the streaming series a hit show, as well as Sally Rooney’s recent novel a literary work, have crafted a certain iconography associated with the game, which has attracted a new generation of players.

But much of this recent attraction of the chess club is not necessarily about the intricacies of the game; rather, it is the ease of connecting with others that it enables, by pulling up a seat and playing with someone who may be a complete stranger.

“It is a brilliant Trojan horse,” said Jonah Freud, founder of a local venue in London, a bookshop, reading room, coffee house and bar, which has organized a well-attended chess club weekly since it began four years ago. Freud’s aim is to “remove chess off a pedestal and make it feel similar to billiards in a dive bar”.

“It's a really easy tool to meet people. It kind of removes the pressure of the need of conversation from socializing with people. One can handle the awkward part of introducing yourself and talking to a new acquaintance over a board instead of with no kind of shared activity around it.”

Growing the Network: Social Gatherings Outside London

In Birmingham, Chesscafé is a regular chess night held at a city cafe, just outside the city centre. “Our observation was that people are seeking places where you can socialize, socialise and have a good time beyond going to a pub or club,” stated its creator and organiser, a young leader, 21.

Alongside his friend Abdirahim Haji, 21, he purchased chessboards, created promotional materials and started the chess club in the start of the year, while in his last year of university. In less than a year, he said their event has grown to attract over one hundred youthful players to its events.

“A chess club has a particular reputation associated with it, about it seeming quiet. Our approach is to move in the contrary way; it is a convivial party with chess as part of it,” he emphasized.

Discovering and Playing: An Alternative Cohort of Players

Among numerous attendees, chess clubs are an introduction to the game. Zoë Kezia, 27, is picking up how to participate in chess with fellow visitors of the weekly event at the venue. Her interest in the pastime was sparked after an pleasurable evening dancing and engaging in chess at a previous Knight Club's events.

“It is a unique concept, but it works,” she commented. “It promotes face-to-face interactions rather than screen-based pastimes. It's a no-cost third space to meet new people. It is inviting, one doesn't need to necessarily be skilled at chess.”

She jokingly compared the trendiness of chess with the youth to the superficial image of the “performative male”, an attempt to feign intellectualism while signaling the veneer of “coolness”. Whether the chess craze has cultivated a genuine passion in the sport isn't a notion she is quite convinced by. “It is a wholesome trend, but it’s largely a trend,” she observed. “When you compete against people who are really dedicated about it, it quickly turns less fun.”

Competitive Play and Togetherness

It might all be a bit of fun and games for those looking to employ a game set as a social vehicle, but serious players certainly have their place, even if away from the dancefloor.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, 22, who helps organise Knight Club,says that more competitive players have formed a league table. “People who are part of the competition will play one another, we will go to quarter-finals, advanced stages, and then we'll finally have a league winner.”

A dedicated player, in his twenties, is a serious competitor and chess teacher. He joined the competition for about a twelve months and participates at the club nearly weekly. “This offers a nice alternative to playing serious chess; it provides a feeling of belonging,” he expressed.

“It is fascinating to see how it evolves into increasingly a social pastime, because in the past the sole people who played chess were people who rarely socialize; they just remained home. It is usually only two people playing on a game board …

“The thing appeals to me about this place is that one isn't really facing the computer, you are facing real people.”