About
Chess is better in person
Chess In Public (CHIP) exists for one reason: to get great chess off the screen and back across a real board — in a cafe, a park, a quiet corner of a restaurant — with a real person sitting opposite you.
Online chess is brilliant, but something disappears when every opponent becomes a username. You don’t shake hands. You don’t laugh over a blunder. You don’t leave having met someone new. That’s the part CHIP is built to bring back.
The idea is simple: find someone nearby who wants to play, pick a public venue, book a time, and just show up. Everything we’ve added since — profiles, reputation and reliability badges, tournaments and hangouts, the community Photowall — grows from that same goal of getting people around the board together.
Real, public, in person
Every game happens at a public venue. Safe, social, visible — the way over-the-board chess is meant to be.
Community first
CHIP is growing city by city across Nigeria, built around the players who show up, host games, and welcome newcomers.
820+
Players
180+
Cities
180+
Games posted
Real numbers from the CHIP community — and growing.
The founder
Meet Henry
Henry Unegbu is the founder of Chess In Public. He’s a software engineer who picked up chess — and after a handful of games in person, it was obvious they were far more fun than anything online. CHIP grew straight out of that: if playing over a real board is the best part, make it easy for anyone to find a game.
He’s building CHIP largely solo and in the open, one city at a time, shipping the features players actually ask for. If you’ve got an idea, a bug, or just want to say hello, he’d genuinely like to hear from you.
Show some love
Finding and playing 1v1 games on CHIP is free, and it’s built and run by one person. If CHIP has brought you a good game — or you just believe in more chess, in public — you can support the work. Every bit helps keep the lights on and the next feature shipping.
Support CHIP on SelarYou’ll be taken to Selar to complete your support securely. Thank you — truly.
Get in touch
Questions, ideas, or feedback? Reach us at support@chessinpublic.com.
Ready to play?
Join the growing community of players who are tired of playing against a screen.
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