Do young people not play chess anymore?
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
Bucharest, Romania
July 30, 2018 1:52am CST
Hello my friends. I don’t know if you knew about this but recently I started to like playing chess and I also started to go out in the park where people play chess.
The thing is that at least 90% of those that play chess in the park are old people over 50 y.o. I rarely saw any youngsters in the park playing chess. I literally have no one to play with. I don’t want to play with old people because I can’t connect with them.
Why do you think that young people are not interested in chess anymore? This generation is fully captivated by video games and by parties. I am not saying that that is a bad thing but still I have no one to play with.
I also see that there is very little interest in table tennis too. Sure, there are a few young people too but in my opinion not enough but still much more than the number of young people playing chess.
16 people like this
21 responses
@simplfred (20641)
• Philippines
30 Jul 18
"This generation is fully captivated by video games and by parties." You've already answered your own question, my friend. Children are really invaded by electronics gadgets now.
2 people like this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
Do you see any young people playing chess in the parks?
2 people like this
@simplfred (20641)
• Philippines
30 Jul 18
@Cristi_Ichim Nope, but maybe like you, kids don't want to play with them though they know how to play chess. I used to watch the old players in the parks but I don't have the nerves to challenge them.
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
@simplfred why don’t you have the guts to challenge them
1 person likes this
@Letranknight2015 (51938)
• Philippines
30 Jul 18
I don't play chess anymore, except during my youth. Even then I was not really that good. I just play for fun.
2 people like this
@MALUSE (69373)
• Germany
30 Jul 18
When I go shopping, I cross a park with two chess boards. You're right, most players are elderly men. Quite a lot are from Eastern Europe as one can hear from their accents. I know that there are chess circles at schools and that young people also play 'Go' which is said to be even more difficult.
Yet, the times they are a-changing. Electronic games are more fascinating in this era.
1 person likes this
@MALUSE (69373)
• Germany
30 Jul 18
@Cristi_Ichim There may be others in other parts of the town. Chess played in the open is a speciality of Eastern Europe and Russia. Don't you know that? In Russia people even play it in winter.
I doubt that there are chess boards on the pavement in Southern European cities. In Turkey men play black gammon sitting opposite each other.
It's always men who play. Women do the household chores. :-(
The photo is from Finland.
1 person likes this
@amitkokiladitya (171927)
• Agra, India
30 Jul 18
I agree. Chess has lost its fame
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
It was never really famous but still I dislike the fact that no more young people play chess
1 person likes this
@amitkokiladitya (171927)
• Agra, India
30 Jul 18
@Cristi_Ichim I doubt. The younger generation lack the needed time and patience required to.play chess
1 person likes this
@muhamadyasin82 (656)
• Jakarta, Indonesia
31 Jul 18
children today prefer to play games via mobile phones or use console rather than chess. chess used may also be a game for old people or people who like classic/vintage thing. Old people are hard to follow the game today
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
31 Jul 18
There are young people that play chess too but they do not show up in the park though. The current champion is a young man not an old man
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
31 Jul 18
@muhamadyasin82 but my opinion is that there are young people that like chess too but they don’t show up in the park
1 person likes this
@muhamadyasin82 (656)
• Jakarta, Indonesia
31 Jul 18
@Cristi_Ichim magnus carlsen. yes, but not many young people like him. Chess is no longer a common thing played among young people, it must be admitted
1 person likes this
@toniganzon (72281)
• Philippines
30 Jul 18
Uhm, video games, online games, and the social media? Those are the reasons why board games aren't so popular theses days anymore except for the few who still enjoys them.
1 person likes this
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
19 Nov 18
Not very young but not too old here. I think many children today are more of console gaming and mobile gaming sort. I think they will think chess will be very dull and too much since it requires tactics and strategies. Not saying that they cannot do them but they express their own way of strategy in their games. Also, most games today are very interactive and on-the-go, meaning they can start and continue anytime they want.
But I don't think children with interest in chess and physical sports are not really there. I think a lot of attention is into mobile and console gaming since they require money and they can be detrimental to their young self.
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
19 Nov 18
Hi. I see that you signed in with mylot about 8 years ago and that since 2016 you have not posted any discussion of your own. As for young people, I don't know what to say anymore but it saddens me... I can't express my feelings...
@kavinitu (5535)
• India
30 Jul 18
@Cristi_Ichim Because most of the young people like to play GAMES on mobile.
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
Haha. Not really. Because from a certain age your chess skills decrease. And if they always played without any theory whatsoever they are weak overall
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
31 Jul 18
Well you can learn if you want to but it is ok if you don’t like.
1 person likes this
@sarik1 (7215)
•
2 Aug 18
@Cristi_Ichim i want to learn but i am not understand chess because it is difficult game. so i like and i do not like.
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
Because you don’t want to learn
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
31 Jul 18
That is exactly how I feel too. I can’t socialize with old people. Or can I?
@stacy31 (157)
• Nairobi, Kenya
31 Jul 18
@Cristi_Ichim not possible. How will you even start the conversation?
1 person likes this
@pitstop (13745)
• Australia
30 Jul 18
Thankfully I had an uncle who taught my son chess during a vacation trip last year. He loved it and has been going to chess classes since then. He will turn eight years in a couple of months. We were also lucky as there was a chess teacher who started taking classes for the children in our apartment complex, so it's easy for him to go for the classes. The teacher is enthusiastic and has taken a few children for competitions too.
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
I am glad that your child learned to play chess
1 person likes this
@maximax8 (31046)
• United Kingdom
30 Jul 18
One family member tried hard to teach my two children to play chess. My daughter read a children's book about playing chess and she doesn't have much interest in chess. My son doesn't seem keen on chess either. The youngest person I know that plays chess is 23 years old. In our local town there is a place which has table tennis for free. I sometimes see teens and older people playing there.
1 person likes this
@Cristi_Ichim (3743)
• Bucharest, Romania
30 Jul 18
Oh, that is still good in my opinion even if they don't have any interest in chess. The good thing is that they have been exposed to it. From there on it is their choice if they want to keep playing chess or not.
@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
30 Jul 18
Chess is too difficult and intellectual for today's young generation. Besides there are no buttons to push.
1 person likes this
@saritflor (3914)
• Hungary
30 Jul 18
I think they do, not many as in the past but still many people like it a lot
1 person likes this
@dave121495 (1296)
• Philippines
30 Jul 18
These generation of our are on their smartphones always.
1 person likes this
