“To be classified as a sport will mean that significant additional state funding will be available to bridge, from grants through Sport England and the National Lottery”.
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Ben Jaffey, for the DCMS, said it was common ground that bridge was a game of the mind, but the EBU contended that a sport ought to include “mind sports” which, like physical sports, should be recognised by the sports councils.
The English Bridge Union (EBU) brought the action after Sport England said it would not agree that the card game was a sport.
A High Court judge has been asked to get involved in the argument about whether the card game bridge is a sport or a game.
The EBU says it has the definition of sport in the 2011 Charities Act on its side – activities “which promote health involving physical or mental skill or exertion” – as well as the worldwide Olympic Committee, which said in 1999 that bridge and chess should be considered “mind sports”.
The exclusion also has a knock-on practical impact on the game in England, excluding British players from some worldwide competitions because of rules requiring official domestic recognition.
Followers of the famous game – from local bridge clubs to the rich and famous – believe it should have the same recognition as other games such as chess, snooker and darts – all of which are deemed to be sports.
However, it could be a mistake to play with your husband or wife, as shown by Myrtle Bennett. Regardless of the outcome, there’s still hope for disenfranchised bridge fans-organizers have invited bridge, chess, and tug of war to apply for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
It has argued that bridge is no more of a sporting activity than “sitting at home, reading a book”. He said at the time: “You are doing more physical activity playing bridge, with all that dealing and playing, than in rifle shooting”. “And although bridge is a fantastic pursuit… it certainly isn’t getting the nation any fitter”.
Lack of recognitionaffects the EBU’s ability to take part in European and worldwide competitions, and a change in policy would lead to investments in projects to teach the game to people of all ages and improve facilities, it claims.
He said: “It is not right for mind sports like bridge to be ghettoised in a sense”.
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Separately the EBU has also mounted a legal challenge to a decision by HM Revenue and Customs that bridge is not a sport and is not therefore exempt from Value-Added Tax .
