The Street Gambit Project

The Street Gambit is a project built to bring chess back into everyday adult life.

For many people, chess starts online, quick games, flexible schedules, constant access. But at some point, there’s a natural pull toward something more tangible: real boards, real opponents, real conversations. The problem is that the step to play is often unclear or too difficult to get started.

The Street Gambit exists to be that next stage in your chess journey. We connect people of similar playing strength and help them meet in person, close to where they live or work, to play thoughtful, over-the-board games. No weekend tournament commitments, no junior sections, no long-term commitments, just adults sitting down to play chess.

The project is currently in an early stage, conducting interviews and running pilot games to better understand how people want to play and how local chess communities can form naturally.

Beyond the games themselves, the goal is to create a community: A network of players who recognize each other, play regularly, and build something social around the game. Chess becomes not just something you play online, but something that fits naturally into your real life.

The Street Gambit is about connection, progression, and bringing chess back to the streets, one game at a time.