Rishi Sunak will announce £500,000 funding for chess in the near future. The money will provide major support for England’s men and women international chess teams, plus a boost for teaching the game in state schools along with a plan to install 100 chess tables in public parks.
The prime minister’s new move is set to be unveiled at a ceremony featuring a giant set and board on the lawn at 10 Downing Street. For English Chess Federation officials, it marks the successful end to an initiative first launched in the 1990s, when the then sports minister, Tony Banks, was enthusiastic, but Sport England did not and does not consider chess as a sport.
