Asian Chess Federation announces esports push with ‘echess’ initiative

The Asian Chess Federation (ACF) has announced a initiative it is calling echess, aiming to drive the narrative that esports and chess should be an official IOC-recognized sport.

The initiative was announced by the ACF at the FIDE Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary in partnership with Checkmate Live, ACF’s official online broadcast, data and tournament platform partner.

The echess initiative will begin in October 2024 and will see AFC host a series of official tournaments as well as education events. As part of the partnership, national federations within Asia will be given the opportunity to hold echess player and community programmes.

The initiative aims to capitalise off the remarkable growth that the digital chess community has experienced in the last few years. According to a release, leading online platforms have seen their user bases expand by over 400% since 2020.

In partnership with Checkmate Live, ACF aims to open up new new opportunities for growth in both over-the-board traditional chess and esports chess.

With Abu Dhabi set to host the 2028 Chess Olympiad, ACF said the timing of the initiative works in its favour. The organisation sees this as an opportunity to showcase the region in terms of chess and esports.

Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifa Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, President of the Asian Chess Federation, was present at the FIDE Olympaid and stated in his opening remarks: “As the Asian Chess Federation is well-known for its initiatives, I would like to take this opportunity to encourage all of us to be pioneers in electronic chess.

“Both the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Asia are increasingly integrating esports into their events, and chess, being recognized as an esport, has a unique opportunity to shine in this space.

“In light of this, I am pleased to announce that we are adopting what we will call the ‘Echess Initiative.’ This will position us at the forefront of the electronic chess movement, ensuring that Asia leads the way in innovation and progress within the world of chess.”

There is a growing overlap between chess and esports, as digital-first chess companies have blurred the lines between the two in the past. Chess.com recently partnered with Animoca Brands to launch Anichess, a competitive chess-based game that features spells and abilities akin to a video game.