Join a chess club and play a rated game
A friend has invited you to do this with them.
A club night gives you an opponent across a real board, a clock ticking and someone to talk the game through with afterwards. One rated game puts your name on the national grading list, which gives you a number to chase.
GentleUnder £100 / $130A few weeksIndoorsWith othersUK
How to start
- Search the English Chess Federation club finder for clubs near you.
- Email the club contact and ask which evening suits a first visit.
- Go along, play some friendly games, then ask about entering a rated match.
Where to go
We opened these links on 6 October 2026 and found them to be what we say. Dates, places and prices are on the official page, where they stay up to date.
Plan this
Pick a day, or a month, and we will set out how to get ready, step by step, with a date and a reason for each. A habit needs a fixed slot in the week more than a plan, so the planner gives it one and checks in gently.
Read next
Men's Sheds, walking groups and clubs: how to find your people
A guide to the groups that reliably turn strangers into friends — Men's Sheds, parkrun (running, walking or volunteering), Ramblers walks, u3a, libraries and Meetup — with what each is, how to find one, and a plain method for turning up the first time.