Top players seek EU support for chess in school

BRUSSELS — Chess stars Garry Kasparov and Judit Polgar are seeking European Union support to promote the game in schools across the continent.

Former world champion Kasparov said Tuesday he was looking for government support on top of private funding to spread the game across schools in the 27-nation EU. He said it was unclear how many kids were playing chess but said in French schools alone some 300,000 were involved in the game.

Hungary's Polgar said chess cut across languages and cultural divides since the rules were universal and immediately engaged people into social contact.

It was still unclear how the EU could help but Kasparov said he was also looking how to better integrate chess into school curriculums.