Twitch wants to make chess a major streaming attraction

Leading streaming games platform Twitch has partnered with one of the biggest names in chess to try and drive the game’s popularity with online audiences.

It has struck a multi-year agreement with Chess.com to stream on the twitch.tv/chess channel and further help promote its range of events, many of which is already broadcasts.

The next broadcast will be the Speed Chess Championship, taking place on November 18th, which will see Magnus Carlsen play Wesley So.

There will also be a maintained list of chess streamers who are active on Chess.com. And of course, the partnership will “help develop a better ecosystem of chess content” and look to "improve monetization opportunities for Chess.com content creators”.

"I’ve been a video gamer my whole life," Chess.com founder and CEO Erik Allebest said. "To see the game of chess reach this status among other top online games is a dream come true and something I never imagined when starting Chess.com.

“I’m more excited than ever about the future of online chess. I cannot imagine a better partner than Twitch."

Twitch SVP of content Michael Aragon added: “Chess, like competitive video games and Poker, is a spectator sport that people like to watch live, making it ideal for Twitch. Since our community thrives on interacting in real time with pros who are at the top of their craft, we look forward to seeing chat light up over the best chess plays and strategies.”