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Among the most energetic locations on a weekday evening in east London's Brick Lane couldn't be a restaurant or a urban fashion brand pop-up, it is a chess club – or rather a chess club-nightclub hybrid, precisely speaking.

Knight Club embodies the unlikely crossover between chess and the city's fervent nightlife scene. It was started by Yusuf Ntahilaja, in his late twenties, who began his first chess club in August 2023 at a smaller bar in Aldgate, not too far from the present location at Café 1001 on Brick Lane.

“I wanted to make chess clubs for people who share my background and people my generation,” he said. “Typically, chess is only put in environments that are full of older people, which is not diverse sufficiently.”

Initially, there were only 8 boards shared by 16 people. Now, a “good night” at the weekly club event will draw approximately two hundred eighty people.

At first glance, the venue feels more like a DJ event than a chess club. Cocktails are being served and music is in the air, but the chessboards on each table aren't just ornamental or there as a gimmick: they are all in use and surrounded by a line of onlookers eagerly anticipating for their turn.

Jimmy Ifenayi, 24, has been attending the club often for the past several months. “I had little understanding of chess prior to I came here, and the first time I tried it, I competed in a game against a expert player. That was a quick win, but it made me fascinated to learn and continue enjoying chess,” she said.

“The event is about half networking and 50% people genuinely wanting to play chess … It's a nice way to decompress, which avoids visiting a typical nightspot to meet others my age.”

An Activity Reborn: Chess in the Modern Era

Lately, chess has been firmly established in the societal zeitgeist. Its appeal of digital chess proliferated throughout the pandemic, making it one of the most rapidly expanding online pastimes in the world. In popular culture, the streaming series a hit show, along with the author's latest novel Intermezzo, have crafted a distinct iconography surrounding the game, which has drawn in a fresh wave of enthusiasts.

However much of this newfound attraction of the chess club is not necessarily about the intricacies of the game; rather, it is the simplicity of connecting with others that it facilitates, by taking a seat and engaging with someone who could be a complete unknown individual.

“It is a great Trojan horse,” remarked one organizer, founder of a local venue in the city, a bookshop, reading room, coffee house and bar, which has organized a well-attended chess club weekly since it began several years back. Freud’s objective is to “take chess off a pedestal and make it feel similar to pool in a casual pub”.

“It's a very simple tool to meet people. It kind of removes the pressure of the necessity of conversation from socializing with people. One can handle the awkward bit of making an introduction and talking to a new acquaintance across a game rather than with no kind of shared activity around it.”

Growing the Community: Social Gatherings Beyond London

In Birmingham, a similar initiative is a regular chess night held at a city cafe, just outside the city centre. “Our observation was that individuals are looking for places where one can socialize, interact and have a fun evening beyond visiting a bar or nightclub,” stated its creator and organiser, a young leader, in his early twenties.

Alongside his friend a partner, also young, he bought game sets, created flyers and started the chess club in the start of the year, during his last year of college. Within months, Singh reported their event has grown to draw over 100 youthful players to its gatherings.

“Such a venue has a specific reputation associated with it, about it seeming reserved. Our approach is to move in the opposite direction; it's a convivial get-together with chess involved,” he said.

Learning and Engaging: A New Generation of Players

For many, chess clubs are an entry point to the activity. One participant, 27, is picking up how to participate in chess with fellow visitors of chess night at Reference Point. She became curious in the game was piqued after an pleasurable evening dancing and engaging in chess at one of the club's occasions.

“It's a unique idea, but it works,” she commented. “It promotes face-to-face interactions instead of screen-based activities. It's a free third space to meet new people. It's inviting, you don't need to necessarily be skilled at chess.”

She jokingly compared the trendiness of chess among young people to the facade of the “performative male”, an attempt to feign braininess while projecting the veneer of “coolness”. If the chess trend has cultivated a genuine passion in the sport is not a notion she's entirely convinced by. “It's a wholesome phenomenon, but it’s largely a fad,” she observed. “Once you're playing with opponents who are truly serious about it, it quickly becomes less fun.”

Serious Play and Community

It may seem like a some fun and games for those aiming to employ a chessboard as a networking tool, but competitive players certainly have their place, even if away from the dancefloor.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, 22, who assists in running the club,explains that more skilled attenders have formed a competitive ranking. “Participants who are part of the competition will play one another, we will go to early rounds, semi-finals, and then we'll finally have a league winner.”

A dedicated player, 23, is a serious competitor and chess instructor. He has been in the league for about a year and participates at the club almost weekly. “This is a welcome alternative to playing intense chess; it provides a sense of community,” he expressed.

“It's fascinating to observe how it becomes more of a communal activity, because in the past the only individuals who played chess were those who rarely go outside; they simply remained home. It is typically just a pair playing on a game board …

“The thing I like about this place is that one isn't really facing the computer, you're facing live opponents.”