10 Ways To Celebrate International Chess Day

International Chess Day is July 20, and with it comes a great opportunity to celebrate the game we all love. Whether you're a seasoned chess veteran or just starting out, there are many ways for you to celebrate! 

Play In Our Official International Chess Day Arenas To Win Prizes

What better way to celebrate chess than playing it? On July 20, you'll have the opportunity to play in chess arenas literally all day. Join the Chess.com Community Club to play in one of our 12 two-hour International Chess Day Arenas. 

The first arena starts at 3 a.m. ET/09:00 CEST, with the 11 other arenas following throughout the day. Any community member can join for a chance at free premium memberships, so prepare for the chess-playing marathon! Check out the prizes below:

• Three months of diamond for each arena winner.
• Three six-month diamond memberships for Best Move, Best Game, and Biggest Upset.
• One month of Chessable Pro, Aimchess Pro, or Chess.com diamond membership for 12 random participants.

Learn more about the arenas and prizes here.

Share Your Chess Story

Chess is a truly universal game that brings together people from different backgrounds and life stories. During this International Chess Day, we invite you to share your story with chess on social media. Check out our Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Threads, and Facebook accounts and join the conversation using the hashtag #ChessDay.

Watch The Bullet Chess Championship (And Other Chess Streams)

If you'd like to get your blood pumping for this International Chess Day, watching the 2023 Bullet Chess Championship (BCC) is one of the best things you can do. We're only a few days away from finding out who the fastest player on the planet is, so tune in to our Twitch or YouTube channels to watch the live broadcast starting at 12 p.m. ET/18:00 CEST.

But what if you need more than the BCC? If you're a football fan, you can watch Stanford football players competing in BlitzChamps: Stanford. If you like watching streamers, you can see many of them playing in Chess Played Quick. Whatever kind of chess content you enjoy watching, there's a good option for you on July 20!

Take Part In The Chessable Festable

It's like the Lollapalooza of chess—but free and without having to deal with huge crowds. The Chessable Festable is a half-day long live lesson festival with renowned Chessable authors. Starting on July 20 at 8 a.m. ET/14:00 CEST, join GMs Anish Giri, Maurice Ashley, Sam Shankland, IM John Bartholomew, and many others to celebrate this special day. You can check out more details and the event's schedule here.

Learn More About Chess Culture

Chess is much more than a game. Chess also has its own rich world of books, movies, events, and so much more! International Chess Day is the perfect time for you to learn more about and immerse yourself in chess culture. Whether you're in the mood to curl up with a good book or go for a run while listening to a podcast, there's a good chance you'll find something chess-related to enjoy in this article.

Invite A Friend To Play Or Learn To Play Chess

Chess is better when you're playing with your friends! So why not invite them to play a game with you to celebrate this special day? Just go to our Play Online page, click the Play a Friend button, and select one of the available options to start a new game. 

But what if your friends don't know how to play? Well, this is what International Chess Day is all about, teaching others to play chess. This is the perfect opportunity for you to get even closer to your friends by teaching them something you can enjoy doing together for a long time!

Read About The Dream Team Of 11 Different Countries

Can you imagine if we could bring together the greatest geniuses of each nation to all play in the same event? Chess.com writer Nathaniel Green sure can, and he wrote an article about it. Reading about the best players in history across 11 countries is a great way to celebrate International Chess Day. Check out the full article here.

Play Chess Against Bots From Different Countries

Did you know that there are many international bots on our Play Computer page? You can see where each bot is from by selecting them and checking out the flag that shows up next to their name. You can celebrate this International Chess Day by playing bots of different nationalities! Challenge Indian comedian and streamer Samay and test your luck against Brazilian grandmaster Krikor. 

Watch A Documentary On The History Of Chess

While the tradition of celebrating International Chess Day is not even a century old, the history of chess is much longer. Chess has been around for more than 1,000 years and is one of the oldest board games still played today! A great way to celebrate this special day is to look back and learn more about chess history through the lens of the game's World Champions. 

Lucky for you, we have just the right documentary for you:

Enjoy Chess.com's Special International Chess Day Offer

To celebrate International Chess Day, we'll run a special offer from July 20 until July 27 for our basic members. Anyone who starts a free trial of our membership plans on web will enjoy all our premium features for 30 days instead of a week. That's one month of free Game Review, lessons, unlimited puzzles, and everything else Chess.com has to offer. Even better: you can enjoy this special offer even if you've already been through a free trial before. Click this link to check out the special offer before it expires!

How are you planning to celebrate International Chess Day? Let us know in the comment section below!