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One of the liveliest locations on a Tuesday night in east London's Brick Lane isn't a dining spot or a urban fashion brand temporary shop, it is a chess club – or rather a chess and nightlife fusion, to be exact.

This unique venue represents the surprising fusion between the classic game and London's fervent nightlife culture. It was started by Yusuf Ntahilaja, 27, who launched his initial chess club in August 2023 at a smaller bar in a nearby area, not too far from the present location at a popular cafe on Brick Lane.

“My goal was to make chess clubs for individuals who share my background and those my age,” he said. “Usually, chess is only put in environments that are dominated by senior individuals, which isn't inclusive enough.”

On the first night, there were just eight boards shared by 16 people. Now, a “successful evening” at the regular Knight Club will draw approximately 280 people.

Upon arrival, the venue seems more like a DJ event than a chess club. Cocktails are being served and tunes is playing, but the game boards on each table aren't just decorative or there as a gimmick: they are all in use and encircled by a queue of spectators eagerly anticipating for their chance to play.

Jimmy Ifenayi, in her mid-twenties, has frequented the club often for the last four months. “I had little understanding of chess prior to my first visit, and the initial occasion I tried it, I played a game against a grandmaster. It was a quick victory, but it left me intrigued to study and continue enjoying chess,” she said.

“The event is about half networking and half participants genuinely wishing to play chess … It is a pleasant way to decompress, which avoids going to a typical nightspot to see others my generation.”

A Game Reborn: Chess in the Contemporary Age

Lately, chess has been cemented in the cultural spirit of the times. Its appeal of digital chess proliferated during the global health crisis, establishing it as one of the most rapidly expanding online pastimes globally. In popular culture, the streaming series a hit show, as well as Sally Rooney’s recent novel Intermezzo, have created a certain iconography surrounding the sport, which has drawn in a new wave of enthusiasts.

However much of this recent attraction of the chess club isn't always about the intricacies of the game; instead, it is the ease of connecting with others that it facilitates, by pulling up a chair and playing with someone who may be a complete stranger.

“It is a brilliant clever disguise,” said Jonah Freud, founder of a local venue in the city, a bookstore, reading room, cafe and bar, which has hosted a popular chess club weekly since it opened several years back. His aim is to “remove chess from its elite status and transform it into similar to billiards in a dive bar”.

“It's a very simple tool to meet people. It kind of removes the weight of the need of small talk away from interacting with people. One can handle the uncomfortable part of making an introduction and chatting to a new acquaintance over a board rather than with no kind of shared activity around it.”

Expanding the Community: Social Gatherings Outside the Capital

In Birmingham, a similar initiative is a recurring chess event held at a city cafe, near the downtown area. “Our observation was that people are looking for spaces where one can socialize, interact and have a fun evening beyond visiting a pub or nightclub,” stated its founder and organiser, Karan Singh, 21.

Alongside his associate Abdirahim Haji, 21, Singh purchased chessboards, created flyers and started the chess club in January, while in his final year of university. Within months, he said Chesscafé has expanded to draw over one hundred youthful players to its gatherings.

“A chess club has a particular connotation to it, about it seeming reserved. Our approach is to go the opposite way; it's a social party with chess as part of it,” he emphasized.

Discovering and Playing: A New Generation of Chess Enthusiasts

Among numerous attendees, chess clubs are an entry point to the activity. One participant, in her late twenties, is picking up how to participate in chess with fellow attenders of chess night at the venue. Her interest in the game was piqued after an enjoyable evening moving to music and engaging in chess at one of the club's occasions.

“It's a unique idea, but it functions well,” she said. “It promotes in-person exchanges instead of digital activities. It's a free third space to meet new people. It's inviting, one doesn't have to necessarily be good at chess.”

She jokingly likened the popularity of chess with the youth to the facade of the “performative male”, an attempt to feign braininess while projecting the veneer of “coolness”. If the chess trend has fostered a genuine passion in the sport is not something she's 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 quickly becomes less fun.”

Serious Play and Community

It might all be a bit of lighthearted activity for individuals looking to use a chessboard as a social vehicle, but competitive participants do have their place, albeit away from the dancefloor.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, in her early twenties, who assists in running Knight Club,says that more competitive attenders have established a league table. “People who are part of the competition will play each other, we'll progress to quarter-finals, advanced stages, and then we will finally have a champion.”

A dedicated player, 23, is a serious player and chess teacher. He has been in the league for about a year and plays at the club almost weekly. “This is a nice option to playing serious chess; it gives a feeling of community,” he expressed.

“It is fascinating to observe how it becomes more of a communal activity, because previously the sole people who engaged in chess were those who rarely socialize; they simply remained home. It is usually only a pair playing on a game board …

“What I like about this place is that one isn't really playing against the computer, you're engaging with real people.”