By Kaz Wellington

The ancient game of backgammon is in the early days of an epic revival, thanks to young American enthusiast Remington Davenport, who is attracting a huge wave of new players with her fresh thinking and welcoming hospitality.

After watching her generation struggle in recent years with loneliness and lack of connection, Davenport had a bright idea.

She had grown up playing backgammon with friends in Marin County, California. Initially taught by a friend’s Lebanese father, her girl gang bonded fiercely through the game. Indeed, in its 5000 year history, backgammon has always brought people together.

Fast forward to 2023: an era of technology overload, social media addiction and widespread loneliness. Davenport had just moved to New York and was looking to meet some new people. She remembered the simple joy of connecting through backgammon with her friends, and started looking for local meetups.

“I would go to a few of these meetups, but unfortunately, I wasn’t finding anybody in my age demographic. There was one event where I played this guy who was 90 years old, and he absolutely kicked my ass, which was so awesome. But at that point I was like, okay, I have to just start a club. I have to get people my age playing.”

So, in May 2023, Davenport decided to make it happen. “I created a logo, and I started an Instagram page (NYC Backgammon Club), and I forced about seven of my friends to sit at a bar with me so that I could take pictures and I could start this Instagram. And ever since then, it’s completely blown up.”

She now attracts over 200 people every week to her backgammon events, and plans to continue growing. Her events have clearly struck a chord with Gen Z and Millennials who are hungry for social connection.

The time was right, Davenport said. “there’s a shift in the United States at least. What I can see is that people are actually looking for connection and human interaction. Young people are out looking to make new friends right now. The amount of social clubs that are popping up in New York City is amazing.”

Davenport has also noticed a trend of young people becoming increasingly burnt out by dating apps, and turning to in-person meetups instead. “As well as looking to make new friends, they’re also looking to meet a potential partner in a little bit more of an organic way than through an app”, she comments. In fact, three couples and one engagement have even formed from her backgammon meetups! “When I officiate a wedding, that’s when I know I’ve made it,” she laughs.

Davenport’s events attract players of all levels: from long-time backgammon enthusiasts who are there to strengthen their skills, professional players looking for a regular place to play, to newcomers who join because it looks social and fun.

Despite the very wide mix of levels and backgrounds, Davenport is able to facilitate the events so they flow organically. As well as helping match up players, she communicates a positive and open tone for the night. “If you come, you’ll find people to play with. If somebody is standing around looking for a game, our regulars will call out and invite them to play. Our community is easy-going, not too intense and friendly to newcomers”, she says.

“Really making sure people feel welcome as soon as they walk in the door is a huge, huge thing” she says, as she describes her role as host. “Especially for those going to an event by themself where they don’t know anybody. You just want to feel greeted, you want to know what’s going on, and you don’t want to feel awkward… I just make people feel comfortable, show them around, introduce them to new people so I know they’ll keep coming back”.

By intentionally facilitating a welcoming atmosphere, Davenport has made sure her events are not intimidating to those who might otherwise be put off attending a backgammon event: people attending alone, beginner players, and women.

Many other backgammon organisers struggle to attract more than 10% female players to their events. But thanks to Davenport’s intentionally welcoming approach, for her events, “it is 50/50, which is fantastic to see!”, she remarks.

In addition to casual social events, Davenport has also started running tournaments and is now developing a league. The league will have 8 different teams, and the teams will compete against each other for 8 weeks. This new competitive element is all part of Davenport’s big picture for providing players with development opportunities.

The opportunity to work the Backgammon World Championship Tournament in Monte Carlo this year expanded Davenport’s vision about what was possible. “It was the craziest experience of my whole life. I was just so blown away. I think I watched backgammon for 12 hours a day, nine days straight”.

Davenport noticed plenty of areas where she could contribute to the ongoing development of the tournament. “Out of the 300 people who played, 35 of them were women,” she explained. “And there were really not that many people in their 20s and 30s. So I got back from Monte Carlo and I’m like, okay, what am I doing? What can I do to help fix this problem?”

Her solution: to form a Monte Carlo team! The team will consist of 10 men and 10 women from her community who will be trained up for a year in preparation for the next World Championship. She is currently conducting try-outs, and those who are selected will be supported with all the resources they need to study and train. The whole preparation process will be documented and shared on YouTube.

Davenport hopes that sharing the process will inspire even more young people to get into backgammon, and even has plans to develop outreach and education for children. “I’m just in this starting process of figuring out a program for kids. I’m trying to figure out after school programs of teaching backgammon. There are so many good lessons in backgammon for children that are great for learning maths, probability and statistics, but are also important for life. Backgammon is about contemplating the like, risk and reward of a certain move. I think that’s common in life as well: of trying to decide what’s the right move and what’s the wrong move”.

With Davenport’s reach of 6000 Instagram followers and 3000 on her mailing list, she not only has a great reach, but also so many community members to call on to help with her goal of growing the game.

She’s gone all-in on this mission, leaving her job in sales and throwing herself full-time into developing the backgammon community. “I am dedicating my life to growing the game for the younger generation”, she declares. And her contribution to the game has only just begun.

This is a journey that is surely one to watch.

Learn more about Remington and her backgammon club. Follow the club on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to her mailing list. Join the excitement and be part of the fun as she ushers in the next generation into the world’s greatest game.