Society of Intellectual Sports
Life Is an Intellectual Sport
We're not a club that plays one game in a back room. We're bringing gameplay back to the whole family.
The Society of Intellectual Sports sits at the intersection of competition, community and character. We believe the mind is the most powerful muscle the human body owns — and like any muscle, it needs a workout, a team and a reason to show up. So we built one: card games, strategy and structured intellectual competition, played face-to-face, at a real table, with real people.
We started as one person's idea during the World Series of Poker back in 2003. Two decades later, we're an organization with a founder, a COO, a growing library of programs, and our eyes on the year 2276 — SOIS's 250th anniversary.
Where Minds Compete
The Society of Intellectual Sports is a card game and community organization based in Stratford, Connecticut, serving families, young people, and faith communities across the country. SOIS teaches Spades, Rummy, and 31 as structured intellectual competition — bringing people back to a real table instead of a screen.
The organization is built for parents looking for a weekly activity to share with their kids, teens in youth groups searching for something worth showing up to, seniors seeking cognitive engagement, and anyone who believes a game of cards can carry more weight than people give it credit for.
PROGRAMS
SOIS Family Table
Youth & Sunday School
Senior Programming
Shop
Screens are winning. We're building the comeback.
We saw this crisis before most people had a name for it. Here's what young people are up against — and how a table, a deck, and each other fixes more than you'd think. Hover a card to flip it.
1 in 5
Depression
Young Americans facing a mental health condition this year. Teen depression is up 60%+ in a decade.
Our Response
Structured, competitive play builds emotional regulation and resilience — a documented protective factor against depression.
31.9%
Anxiety
Of adolescents meet criteria for anxiety — the most common condition among young Americans.
Our Response
Face-to-face gameplay directly activates reward pathways a screen simply can't ever reach. Real eye contact, real wins.
↓
Purposelessness
College enrollment, workforce participation and marriage rates under 30 are all declining together.
Our Response
SOIS is an identity, not a hobby. The intellectual athlete has a doctrine, a community, a standard and a reason to show up.
1 in 4
Fatherlessness
Children without a biological father — 4x more likely to face poverty, 2x more likely to drop out.
Our Response
SOIS Family Table seats men and children at the same table, same game, same time — modeling engagement, not just providing for it.
700K+
Crime & Isolation
Young Americans in gangs annually, while the Surgeon General warns of loneliness.
Our Response
Structured alternative programming and a standing open invitation to a real table where showing up counts for something.
7+ hrs
Screen Time
Screen time for a teenager, outside of school. Every one of those hours is a hand not dealt.
Our Response
The card table simply cannot ever be fully replicated on any screen. We're the offline answer to an online epidemic.
From One Question to a Movement
In 2003, watching the World Series of Poker, founder Amanda LaPrade asked a simple question: why isn't there a league built around games like Spades? That question turned into the Society of Intellectual Sports — a Connecticut-based organization now more than two decades in development, led by Amanda as Founder and CEO alongside COO Brian Maillard.
SOIS exists at the intersection of competition, community, and character, built on the belief that the mind is the most powerful muscle a person has, and that it needs to be trained and challenged the same way any muscle does. The mission is simple: use card games and structured competition to build stronger minds, stronger families, and stronger communities.
Built Different, Dealt Fair
SOIS doesn't cut corners to move fast. Every deck, every session, and every program gets built the same deliberate way — with a doctrine behind it and a standard it has to meet. What you get at the table is exactly what was promised, nothing rushed, nothing watered down.
No Gatekeeping, Ever
We're not the bridge club that plays one game behind closed doors. Every skill level, every background, every table is welcome to shuffle in.
Rooted, Not Trendy
22 years in the making, built on God, Country and Family, in that order, always. We're here to be an institution, not a moment.
Play With Purpose
Every deck sold, every session hosted, directly funds the next Family Table gathering. Your fun literally helps build real community.