Chess has seen a huge surge in popularity in the past few years due to factors such as the hit Netflix drama, The Queen’s Gambit; online chess events like PogChamps, where popular twitch streamers participated in chess tournaments with coaching from pro chess players; and media coverage of topics like the cheating scandal dubbed the Carlsen-Niemann Controversy. Many people have also gotten into playing more due to the ease of access, with websites like Chess.com and Lichess allowing complete beginners to create an account and immediately begin playing other people online. 

Specifically, this has affected younger generations, including high school students. Personally, I’ve had a lot of fun playing with some of my friends and classmates here at LVA, and it got me wondering what a chess club at LVA would be like. 

It turns out there used to be an LVA chess club, but there hasn’t been one for a little while. I decided to ask some LVA chess enthusiasts their opinions on having a chess club here at LVA, and some other chess questions for fun. Here are some of the notable results so far, but we’d love to hear your opinions too! Take the survey for yourself here. Also, check out a video interview I did with some LVA chess players here or on the Accolades Instagram to see their opinions on this too. 

Our main question about a chess club here at LVA had unanimous positive answers. As for reasons given, some common answers were motivation to play, opportunity to meet people and learn, and the creative aspect of it being good for an art school. Also, it turns out LVA really likes knights, rooks, and Hikaru, and no one likes Lichess.