How To – Euro Gaming League of San Francisco

San Francisco’s Euro Gaming League (EGL) hosts weekly game nights, open to the public, on Mondays in San Francisco at a public venue in the inner Sunset.

The EGL is a board game club of fun, easygoing folks who get together to build community through tabletop board & card games. We love welcoming new people to the hobby & our events!

How to Attend Game Nights

Join the EGL’s events page on HEYLO to see our events & RSVP. You are also welcome to join us on Discord to stay abreast of events, ask questions, etc!

RSVP on Heylo

What to Expect at Game Night

Time

Monday game nights run from 6 – 10pm. Different tables may start games at different times but generally everyone will be engaged in a game by 6:15pm so it’s best to be prompt, otherwise you may have to wait around for the second round of games 😕

If you’re new to our game nights, we strongly advise arriving 10 minutes early (parking can be challenging so please plan accordingly) so you can be helped by one of our hosts before things get busy, particularly if you are new to games.

Finally, an RSVP is required to attend, as there’s often a waitlist. We may start admitting folks from the waitlist by ~6:10pm, so late attendees may have their spot given away; for this and the above reasons, please try your best to be prompt.

Cost

There’s no fee to attend Monday game nights, although our regular venue does charge a $7 cover (as of Dec 2025); if that’s an obstacle, we may be able to help.

Food/Drink

Since our venue is a game cafe, outside food & drink (other than water) aren’t allowed. Folks give the fare at The Game Parlour rave reviews, however!

What Games do we Play?

We generally have ~40 guests attending any given Monday game night, distributed among 9+ tables. We have a group of “table hosts” who are well-versed in teaching both classic & modern board games and will be more than happy to introduce you to both our games & people.

We pride ourselves on ensuring folks end up in a game of their preferred complexity level, i.e. that no one is “thrown into the deep end” of strategy games. See the FAQ for more information.

Nervous?

We get it! Showing up to an event for the first time – especially where everyone seems to know everyone else – can be nerve-wracking 😟 … but we hope you’ll give it a shot!

We are always happy for new players to join, as we enjoy building a fun community for folk of all sorts. If you have never played “modern” board games before, just ask someone to direct you to an EGL host, who can guide you into a game of your comfort level from our extensive games library!

Come solo or come with friends – either way you’ll find us to be a warm, welcoming group 😍

Want to host a game?

Folks are welcome to “pitch” a game to the crowd & gauge interest. We do recommend to attend a few game nights before offering up games to get familiar with the crowd & vibe. Additionally we ask everyone who’d like to host a table first review & agree to our “run a game” guidelines.

Can I bring my prototype/unreleased game?

We have had folks bring their in-development games to share & garner feedback. We’re currently formalizing policies for this type of sharing which we expecto to publish in early 2026. In the meantime, please reach out if you’d like to host a table with a yet-to-be-released game.

Questions?

See our FAQ or contact us via email or discord!

We encourage folks who attend our board game events to share games they know & love … you’ll have a chance to pitch it to the crowd!

Anyone is welcome to pitch a game, the only real requirement our club has is that if you’re going to host & teach a game that you be well-versed in the rules – please avoid narrating out of a rule book to your table … that’s no fun for anyone 😑

This video by Shut up & Sit Down is one of the best how-to’s on the art of teaching a game, definitely worthy of a watch (20m) if you find yourself often running/teaching games.

When pitching your game

Try your best to include the following details & convey the info relatively quickly:

How long will it take to learn?
How long will it take to to play/complete the game?
Approximate complexity level (eg, Quacks is ~ 2/5; Terra Mystics is 4/5, etc)
Theme/plot: what are players doing, what’s our primary goal?
Main mechanics (eg, resource management, worker placement, engine/tableau builder, set collection, etc.)

Again, try your best to keep your game pitch to a minute; few have the patience for a short story 😉

Warning Signs

Our club prides itself on ensuring that folks end up at games that are commensurate with their skill level – we do our best to avoid throwing new to the hobby guests into the deep end 😵

Ask folks at your table for their experience with modern board games and assess whether they’re really ready for that game of Terra Mystica you’re about to throw down.

When in doubt, ask them to check in with, or better yet introduce them, to one of the EGL showrunners.

Remember – as you’re teaching/playing, look around the table and assess! As table host, your primary goal should be to ensure that everyone at your table is engaged & enjoying themselves … focus around the table first, and on how well you’re doing in the game second 🥈 😉

Dealing with AP

Analysis Paralysis – a board game bane we all have to deal with! It can be super frustrating to have someone take overlong to take their turn.

Here’s some tips to help nip AP in the bud:

Screen your players: as noted above, don’t throw new to games guests into the deep end.
Learning Game: right after the teach, especially for mid-weight & heavier games, state that everyone should consider this session a learning game; don’t overthink your move, let’s keep the game going.
Lead by example: keep your turns moving, perhaps narrate as you go to help reinforce how the game play, but be brisk 😏 and keep the game moving!

Additional Considerations

Try to show up early so we can get you a table & you can start setting up
Most of the things you need to know for the pitch are available on BoardGameGeek: playtime, complexity (i.e., “weight”), game mechanics, etc.

Finally – be bold! Watch the shux video, but remember that teaching board games is a skill like anything else – you’re going to get better at it with practice. You can also learn from watching others teach – our regular hosts can provide great insight, just by watching how they teach games at EGL game nights! 🎲

Category: How To

Monday Game Nights in SF