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One of the most energetic venues on a Tuesday night in east London's Brick Lane isn't a dining spot or a urban fashion label temporary shop, it is a chess gathering – or a chess club-nightclub combination, to be exact.

This unique venue embodies the surprising blend between chess and the city's dynamic nightlife scene. It was started by Yusuf Ntahilaja, in his late twenties, who launched his first chess club in August 2023 at a more intimate bar in a nearby area, not too far from the current location at a popular cafe on the iconic lane.

“I wanted to make chess clubs for people who share my background and people my age,” he explained. “Typically, chess is only put in environments that are dominated by older people, which is not diverse enough.”

On the first night, there were just eight boards between 16 people. Now, a “good night” at the regular Knight Club will attract approximately two hundred eighty attendees.

Upon arrival, the venue seems more like a DJ event than a chess club. Cocktails are flowing and music is in the air, but the game boards on every table are not just decorative or there as a novelty: they are all occupied and surrounded by a line of spectators waiting for their chance to play.

One regular, in her mid-twenties, has frequented the club regularly for the past four months. “I possessed no knowledge of chess before I came here, and the first time I ever played, I competed in a game with a grandmaster. It was a quick victory, but it made me intrigued to learn and continue enjoying chess,” she noted.

“This gathering is about 50% networking and half people actually wishing to engage in chess … It's a nice way to decompress, which avoids going to a club to meet others my generation.”

A Game Revitalized: Chess in the Modern Era

Lately, chess has been cemented in the cultural spirit of the times. The popularity of digital chess expanded rapidly throughout the pandemic, making it one of the most rapidly expanding internet pastimes globally. In popular culture, the streaming series a hit show, as well as the author's recent novel a literary work, have crafted a distinct imagery surrounding the game, which has attracted a fresh generation of enthusiasts.

However a great deal of this newfound attraction of the chess night is not always about the technicalities of the play; instead, it is the ease of social interaction that it facilitates, by taking a seat and engaging with a person who could be a complete unknown individual.

“It's a great Trojan horse,” remarked one organizer, founder of Reference Point in the city, a bookstore, library, cafe and bar, which has hosted a well-attended chess club weekly since it opened four years ago. Freud’s objective is to “remove chess off a pedestal and make it feel similar to billiards in a dive bar”.

“It is a very easy vehicle to get to know people. It kind of takes the weight of the necessity of small talk from socializing with people. One can do the awkward bit of introducing yourself and chatting to someone over a game rather than with no shared activity around it.”

Expanding the Network: Chess Nights Outside the Capital

Elsewhere in the UK, a similar initiative is a recurring chess event taking place at a city cafe, just outside the city centre. “We found that individuals are looking for spaces where one can go out, socialise and enjoy a good time outside of going to a pub or nightclub,” stated its creator and organiser, Karan Singh, in his early twenties.

Alongside his friend Abdirahim Haji, also young, Singh bought chessboards, printed flyers and started the chess club in the start of the year, while in his final year of college. In less than a year, Singh reported Chesscafé has grown to attract more than 100 youthful participants to its events.

“A chess club has a particular connotation associated with it, about it being quiet. Our approach is to move in the contrary way; it's a convivial party with chess as part of it,” he said.

Discovering and Playing: A New Cohort of Chess Enthusiasts

Among numerous attendees, chess clubs are an introduction to the activity. One participant, 27, is learning how to play chess with other attenders of chess night at the venue. Her interest in the pastime was piqued after an enjoyable night moving to music and playing chess at a previous the club's occasions.

“It is a unique concept, but it functions well,” she said. “It encourages in-person exchanges instead of digital pastimes. It is a no-cost third space to encounter new people. It is inviting, you don't have to necessarily be good at chess.”

She jokingly compared the popularity of chess with the youth to the superficial image of the “performative male”, an attempt to simulate intellectualism while projecting the veneer of “coolness”. Whether the chess craze has cultivated a genuine interest in the sport is not something she is entirely convinced by. “It is a positive phenomenon, but it’s largely a fad,” she said. “When you compete with opponents who are truly serious about it, it rapidly turns less fun.”

Competitive Play and Togetherness

It may seem like a bit of fun and games for individuals aiming to employ a game set as a networking tool, but serious players do have their place, even if away from the dancefloor.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, 22, who helps running Knight Club,says that increasingly competitive attenders have formed a competitive ranking. “Participants who are part of the competition will play each other, we'll progress to quarter-finals, advanced stages, and then we will eventually have a league winner.”

Ryames Chan, 23, is a competitive player and chess instructor. He joined the competition for about a twelve months and participates at the club almost weekly. “This offers a nice option to playing intense chess; it gives a feeling of belonging,” he expressed.

“It's fascinating to observe how it becomes increasingly a social activity, because in the past the sole individuals who engaged in chess were people who didn't go outside; they simply remained home. It is usually only a pair playing on a chessboard …

“What I like about this place is that you're not actually playing against the computer, you are facing real people.”