{"id":23782,"date":"2026-08-01T01:57:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T20:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=23782"},"modified":"2026-08-01T01:57:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T20:57:10","slug":"chess-community-in-an-uproar-after-all-female-team-reaches-top-tier-only-to-have-gender-rule-backfire-on-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=23782","title":{"rendered":"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>chess community<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has been left divided after the <\/span><b>UK\u2019s only all-female team<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> earned promotion to the country\u2019s top division, only to be told they must add a<\/span><b> male player<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to their squad.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rule was created to encourage more women to take up chess, but many netizens believe it has <\/span><b>backfired <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in this case.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Players have also spoken up about how they have worked hard to reach the top on their own and should not have to replace one of their teammates.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"post-highlights\"><span class=\"h2\">Highlights<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span class=\"bullet-wrapper\"><i class=\"bullet\"\/><\/span><span>The Lionesses became the first all-female team to reach the UK&#8217;s top chess division through promotion.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span class=\"bullet-wrapper\"><i class=\"bullet\"\/><\/span><span>League rules now require the team to include at least one male player, forcing them to change their lineup.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span class=\"bullet-wrapper\"><i class=\"bullet\"\/><\/span><span>The rule has sparked debate over whether it now undermines the very goal of encouraging women in chess.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI hope this <\/span><b>decision is revisited<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Women chess players need to be encouraged and promoted as much as possible, and the Lionesses have done great so far,\u201d wrote one commenter.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>The UK chess team earned promotion but now has to lose one of its female players to be replaced by a male player<\/h3>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"01-6a6cd89cdca0c__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=01-6a6cd89cdca0c__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=01-6a6cd89cdca0c__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01-6a6cd89cdca0c__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01-6a6cd89cdca0c__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"A close-up of a female hand with red nails moving a chess piece during a game, highlighting the chess community.\" title=\"A close-up of a female hand with red nails moving a chess piece during a game, highlighting the chess community.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/pt-br\/fotografias\/uma-mulher-esta-jogando-um-jogo-de-xadrez-Y6O2bRCDw0o\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Ahmed\/Unsplash (not the actual photo)<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Lionesses A Team made history by becoming the first all-female team to reach Division One of the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL), one of the UK\u2019s top chess <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/lifetime-supply-winners\/\" class=\" staff-link\">competitions<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instead of simply celebrating the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/people-proud-of-things\/\" class=\" staff-link\">achievement<\/a>, the players were told they could not compete with an all-women lineup.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Under 4NCL rules, every Division One team must have at least one <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/funny-men-acting-childish\/\" class=\" staff-link\">male<\/a> player and one female player on its roster.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"02-6a6cd89e7a13d__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=02-6a6cd89e7a13d__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=02-6a6cd89e7a13d__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/02-6a6cd89e7a13d__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/02-6a6cd89e7a13d__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"A female chess player in deep thought during a chess game, focusing on the chess community's uproar.\" title=\"A female chess player in deep thought during a chess game, focusing on the chess community's uproar.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/pt-br\/foto\/madeira-mulher-jogando-jogos-6114964\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Vlada Karpovich\/Pexels (not the actual photo)<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"2083180891325579621-png__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=2083180891325579621-png__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=2083180891325579621-png__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2083180891325579621-png__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2083180891325579621-png__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"348\" alt=\"A social media post from the chess community expressing hope for revisiting a decision on women chess players.\" title=\"A social media post from the chess community expressing hope for revisiting a decision on women chess players.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MrDVader\/status\/2083180891325579621\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MrDVader<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"2083153787414327533-png__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=2083153787414327533-png__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=2083153787414327533-png__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2083153787414327533-png__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2083153787414327533-png__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"287\" alt=\"A social media post from the chess community urging to let the Lionesses compete, showing the uproar.\" title=\"A social media post from the chess community urging to let the Lionesses compete, showing the uproar.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/emiliacastelao\/status\/2083153787414327533\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">emiliacastelao<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That means the Lionesses would have to remove one of their eight female players to make room for a man.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Apparently, the rule was introduced decades ago to encourage female participation in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-series-my-satirical-responce-to-my-society\/\" class=\" staff-link\">chess<\/a> by making sure every top-division team included at least one woman.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ironically, the only all-<a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/girly-memes\/\" class=\" staff-link\">female<\/a> team to reach the division now said that same rule is standing in its way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"post-desktop-ad-within-content post-ads margin-left\"><span class=\"dfp-ad\"><span><span class=\"pg-ad-label\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h3>The Lionesses player Emily Maton shared that they should not be forced to change the team that got them there<\/h3>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"03-6a6cd8a0086c1__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=03-6a6cd8a0086c1__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=03-6a6cd8a0086c1__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/03-6a6cd8a0086c1__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/03-6a6cd8a0086c1__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"A female chess player contemplating her next move during a chess game, showing the intensity in the chess community.\" title=\"A female chess player contemplating her next move during a chess game, showing the intensity in the chess community.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/brendanogorman.smugmug.com\/Chess\/2024\/East-Midlands-Chess-Congress-January-2024\/i-hr5jxmG\/A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Brendan O\u2019Gorman<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">An 18-year-old player, Emily Maton, said the Lionesses worked hard to reach the league\u2019s top <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/people-divided-two-camps\/\" class=\" staff-link\">division<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She said, \u201cWe\u2019ve been promoted on our own merit. There\u2019s no shortage of male players in the division,\u201d per <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Guardian.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to Maton, the team exists because women are still heavily underrepresented in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/funny-brands-fighting-jokes\/\" class=\" staff-link\">competitive<\/a> chess.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe whole point of the team is to bring female representation when there isn\u2019t really any at all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"04-6a6cd8a1cc168__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=04-6a6cd8a1cc168__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=04-6a6cd8a1cc168__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/04-6a6cd8a1cc168__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/04-6a6cd8a1cc168__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"All-female chess community team playing intently at multiple tables during a chess tournament.\" title=\"All-female chess community team playing intently at multiple tables during a chess tournament.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DSVlFWNjWuJ\/?img_index=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">sptwchess<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She believes forcing the team to include a male <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/player-gamer-drawings-video-game-characters-playing-linda-bouderbala\/\" class=\" staff-link\">player<\/a> completely changes its purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019s going against the entirety of the rule, and it undermines what we\u2019re trying to do as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/people-share-their-selfless-stories\/\" class=\" staff-link\">team<\/a>,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Maton also spoke about her own experience growing up in chess. She recalled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/coaching-quotes\/\" class=\" staff-link\">coaches<\/a> telling her, \u201cYou\u2019re very good for a girl.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She also said people regularly told the team they did not deserve to reach the top division.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe\u2019ve had people tell us we don\u2019t deserve to be in this division, that we\u2019re not good enough. We got to the top proving everyone wrong \u2013 and now this undermines that,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Maton further shared the team has given young women a place where they finally feel they belong<\/h3>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"06-6a6cd8a4bc634__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=06-6a6cd8a4bc634__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=06-6a6cd8a4bc634__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/06-6a6cd8a4bc634__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/06-6a6cd8a4bc634__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"An all-female chess team focuses on their moves during a competitive match, showcasing their strategic skills.\" title=\"An all-female chess team focuses on their moves during a competitive match, showcasing their strategic skills.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DCfH3QbiIIJ\/?img_index=3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">sptwchess<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"post-desktop-ad-within-content post-ads margin-left\"><span class=\"dfp-ad\"><span><span class=\"pg-ad-label\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaking to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Times, <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Maton shared that she has been playing competitive chess since she was nine years old but often felt isolated because there were so few girls at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/original-character-tournament-illustrations-matthew-wills\/\" class=\" staff-link\">tournaments<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She remembered walking into competitions where it was mostly older men.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt would be me and my one <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/moments-realizing-friend-bad-person\/\" class=\" staff-link\">friend<\/a> and then a room of 50-year-old men,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She also said she had seen male players react badly after losing to a girl. \u201cI\u2019ve witnessed a male player <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/overly-designed-things-pics\/\" class=\" staff-link\">smash<\/a> all the pieces off the board and talk about how they can\u2019t believe they lost to a girl.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The experience even pushed her away from chess at school.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"05-6a6cd8a35547f__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=05-6a6cd8a35547f__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=05-6a6cd8a35547f__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/05-6a6cd8a35547f__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/05-6a6cd8a35547f__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"Two members of an all-female chess team deeply engrossed in a game, reflecting on their next moves.\" title=\"Two members of an all-female chess team deeply engrossed in a game, reflecting on their next moves.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DOIn7MZAm3Z\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">sptwchess<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI basically stopped attending my school chess club in secondary <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/weird-infuriating-school-experiences\/\" class=\" staff-link\">school<\/a> just because you felt so isolated and out of place,\u201d she added.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the Lionesses climbed through the divisions, Maton said people continued doubting them, claiming they \u201cdon\u2019t belong\u201d and are going to \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/funny-old-times-struggles\/\" class=\" staff-link\">struggle<\/a>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She further shared that because of how girls are treated, the majority of girls quit playing at 13 years of age.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Maton believes the Lionesses has changed that by creating a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/community\/\" class=\" staff-link\">community<\/a> where players support each other instead of feeling like they are simply filling a quota.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe\u2019re playing because we want this team to succeed and we really care about the others on the team.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"07-6a6cd8a655310__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=07-6a6cd8a655310__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=07-6a6cd8a655310__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/07-6a6cd8a655310__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/07-6a6cd8a655310__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"Several female chess players engaged in a chess community tournament, concentrating on their games.\" title=\"Several female chess players engaged in a chess community tournament, concentrating on their games.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DCfH3QbiIIJ\/?img_index=5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">www.instagram.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Looking back on her previous teams, she said things felt very different because she could not relate to men and you were part of the team so \u201cthat they could fill the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/world-cultures-people-portraits-spencer-montero\/\" class=\" staff-link\">diversity<\/a> quota.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But with the Lionesses, she alleged female players have finally been given a place where they are valued for their ability. \u201cThis team has been an amazing step away from that, to be part of a team because of your own achievements.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"post-desktop-ad-within-content post-ads margin-left\"><span class=\"dfp-ad\"><span><span class=\"pg-ad-label\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Maton, earning <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/manager-promised-promotion\/\" class=\" staff-link\">promotion<\/a> made that achievement even more meaningful.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt is a huge achievement for us to get promoted to that top level and prove them wrong that an all-female team can do it,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Other team players from the Lionesses also spoke about how they finally found a place<\/b><\/h3>\n<p class=\"attachment-link-container shareable-image-block\" id=\"08-6a6cd8a80f940__700\" data-href=\"http:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?image_id=08-6a6cd8a80f940__700.jpg\"><a class=\"web-share-button list-item-share new-share-experiment\" data-location=\"single-post-image\" data-title=\"Chess Community In An Uproar After All-Female Team Reaches Top Tier Only To Have Gender Rule Backfire On Them\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/chess-community-in-uproar-after-female-team-reaches-top-tier\/?media_id=08-6a6cd8a80f940__700\" data-image=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/08-6a6cd8a80f940__700.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow\"><i><svg class=\"svg-icon icon-share-icon\" role=\"img\" height=\"16\" width=\"16\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\"><path d=\"M0 15C0 10.8824 5.22292 10.0588 8.79817 10.0588V14.1765L15.7006 8.23061C15.7941 8.15345 15.8695 8.05559 15.9213 7.94441C15.9731 7.83323 16 7.71155 16 7.58824C16 7.46492 15.9731 7.34314 15.9213 7.23196C15.8695 7.12078 15.7941 7.02302 15.7006 6.94586L8.79817 1V5.11765C2.3995 5.11765 0 9.76235 0 15Z\"\/><\/svg><\/i><\/a><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/08-6a6cd8a80f940__700.jpg\" width=\"700\" height=\"455\" alt=\"The all-female chess team poses together in a grand hall, celebrating their achievements in the chess community.\" title=\"The all-female chess team poses together in a grand hall, celebrating their achievements in the chess community.\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/C6oeurHNp8h\/?img_index=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">sptwchess<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">19-year-old player Alisha Vyas shared she had previously played on mixed teams where she was often the only <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/hardest-truth-women-accepted\/\" class=\" staff-link\">woman<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She admitted she sometimes felt like she was included to satisfy a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/funny-memes-circle-of-idiots\/\" class=\" staff-link\">quota<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI knew I was only there to fulfill the quota as a woman,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But after joining She Plays to Win, her experience has completely changed. \u201cBeing part of She Plays to Win is amazing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Founder Lorin D\u2019Costa, who started She Plays to Win during the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/people-share-their-covid-projects\/\" class=\" staff-link\">COVID<\/a> pandemic, shared that creating that environment has taken years of work.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He explained, \u201cThe Lionesses earned promotion the hard way, but now their reward is losing the thing that makes them special.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">D\u2019Costa also said not enough girls are taking up chess at a young age.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He believes the game teaches important thinking and decision-making <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/skill-takes-10-hours-pays-off-forever\/\" class=\" staff-link\">skills<\/a> that can help young women succeed in careers where men have traditionally been overrepresented.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to the organization, only around 11% of the world\u2019s top-rated chess players are women.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Despite the debate, The Four Nations Chess League shared that the rule still applies<\/b><\/h3>\n<p class=\"post-content-media-source\">Image credits: <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/pt-br\/fotografias\/tabuleiro-de-xadrez-preto-e-branco-perto-de-pessoas-em-pe-dentro-do-predio-CZRNxAIYLzI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Mitchell Johnson<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Four Nations Chess League said it understands the discussion but believes the rule should remain.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mike Truran from the 4NCL explained that the top division has required mixed teams ever since the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/people-share-dating-stories-out-of-their-league\/\" class=\" staff-link\">league<\/a> began in 1994.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He said, \u201cWe remain the only league in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/topics\/united-kingdom\/\" class=\" staff-link\">UK<\/a> that encourages female participation in chess by requiring mixed teams.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"post-desktop-ad-within-content post-ads margin-left\"><span class=\"dfp-ad\"><span><span class=\"pg-ad-label\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">League officials also surveyed team <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/pilot-share-barely-survived-moments\/\" class=\" staff-link\">captains<\/a> during the 2025-26 season about changing the rule.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to Truran, there was \u201cno significant appetite\u201d to change it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He added that the league remains open to reviewing the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/rule-school-work-backfired\/\" class=\" staff-link\">policy<\/a> in the future if opinions change.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Truran also argued that removing the mixed-team requirement altogether could actually reduce opportunities for women because some clubs might stop selecting female players entirely.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He said there is currently no evidence that the existing rule <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/black-friday-fails-pics\/\" class=\" staff-link\">discourages<\/a> women from participating in chess.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For now, unless the rule changes, the team has to replace one of its players with a male teammate.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>\u201cAll you needs is the Queens,\u201d wrote one netizen<\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"post-desktop-ad-within-content post-ads margin-left\"><span class=\"dfp-ad\"><span><span class=\"pg-ad-label\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"post-desktop-ad-within-content post-ads margin-left\"><span class=\"dfp-ad\"><span><span class=\"pg-ad-label\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n<div id=\"postPoll-11008655\" class=\"post-poll poll-wrapper single-post\" data-poll-viewed=\"false\" data-post-id=\"11008655\" data-main-post-id=\"\" data-poll-id=\"29174\"> <input class=\"post-11008655-poll-value\" type=\"hidden\" 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Check out the results:<\/h3>\n<h3 class=\"answered-content-question\" data-bind=\"text: currentQuestionText()\"\/>\n<p> <span class=\"text\">Total votes \u00b7 <\/span> <span data-bind=\"text: totalVotesFormatted\"\/> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <!-- Newsletter --> <\/p>\n<div class=\"subscribe-to-newsletter-block-wrapper\">\n<p>Newsletter<\/p>\n<div class=\"subscribe-to-newsletter-block\">\n<p><h3 class=\"title\">Subscribe to Access <br \/>Exclusive Polls<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"right\"> <img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/boredpanda\/images\/icons\/subscription-panda.svg\" alt=\"Subscribe to Access &lt;br\/&gt; Exclusive Polls\"\/> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"disclaimer\">\n<p>By entering your email and clicking Subscribe, you&#8217;re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boredpanda.com\/privacy-policy\/\">Privacy Policy<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-bind=\"if: newsletterSubscribed\" class=\"thank-you\">\n<div class=\"wrapper\">\n<p class=\"right\">Thank you! You&#8217;ve successfully subscribed to newsletters!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <!-- Newsletter --> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script type=\"didomi\/javascript\">\nwindow._fbSDKPromise = window._fbSDKPromise || new Promise((resolve, reject) => {\nwindow.fbAsyncInit = function () {\nFB.init({\nappId  : '887842622821495',\nversion: 'v17.0',\nstatus : true,\ncookie : true,\nxfbml  : false\n});\nresolve(FB);\n};\n\/\/ Load SDK only once\nif (!document.getElementById('facebook-jssdk')) {\nconst script = document.createElement('script');\nscript.id = 'facebook-jssdk';\nscript.async = true;\nscript.src = `https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/${BoredPanda.Config.wp_lang}\/sdk.js`;\nscript.onerror = reject;\ndocument.head.appendChild(script);\n}\n});\n<\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The chess community has been left divided after the UK\u2019s only all-female team earned promotion to the country\u2019s top division, only to be told they must add a male player to their squad. The rule was created to encourage more women to take up chess, but many netizens believe it has backfired in this case&#8230;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23783,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static.boredpanda.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/fb_image_6a6cd8ce17814.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsweek-trending"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23782","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23782"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23782\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}