Anish Giri leads all-female chess team to unexpected success in 4NCL
The all-female team 'She Plays to Win' (SPTW) achieved a surprising victory in the opening weekend of the British Four Nations Chess League's top division. The team, which previously sought to remain exclusively female, recruited world number 11 Anish Giri to comply with league gender-diversity mandates.
The 'She Plays to Win' (SPTW) team, known as the Lionesses, has made a strong start in the top division of the British Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). Having earned successive promotions, the team was initially expected to struggle against more established clubs. However, they performed exceptionally well during the season's opening weekend.
The team's participation in the top flight was complicated by league regulations. The 4NCL mandates that teams in the first division must include at least one player of each sex, a rule intended to encourage gender diversity in the sport. SPTW had reportedly expressed a desire to compete as an all-female squad for the 2026-27 season, but the league maintained its requirement. To comply with these rules while maintaining their competitive edge, team manager and England women’s coach Lorin D’Costa recruited world number 11 Anish Giri to join the roster.
This move allowed the team to meet the league's gender-diversity criteria while bolstering their lineup with a high-ranking grandmaster. The team's performance has been described as a revelation, defying expectations that they would be outclassed by their opponents. The situation highlights the ongoing tension between the desire for female-only competitive spaces and the league's commitment to integrated team structures.
📡 Media Analysis
How each outlet framed the story — angles, word choices, and what they chose to push or ignore.
Frames the inclusion of a male player as a necessary compromise forced by rigid league rules on a team that wanted to remain all-female.
"the league stood by its rule"
✓ Only outlet to report: Reported that the team explicitly wanted to continue without male players before being forced to hire Giri.
🔍 What Nobody's Reporting
- ·The league's official justification or public statement regarding the necessity of the gender-diversity rule.
- ·The reaction of other teams in the 4NCL regarding the inclusion of a world-class player like Anish Giri on a team otherwise composed of female players.
📰 Sources
0 A-rated source(s) among 1 total. Lowest trust: The Guardian (B)