SideQuest closes three of its gaming cafes in the UK
1 December 2025
If you are a gamer and a fan of esports in the UK, chances are that you’ve set foot in a SideQuest Gamers Hub at some point in the past few years. Since the opening of their first café back in January of 2019, in London Charing Cross, SideQuest opened a total of five venues across the U United Kingdom. Unfortunately, after closing their Westfield location last year, the company has now announced that they will also be closing their esports cafes in Canterbury, Coventry and Elephant Park. As a result, SideQuest’s earlier mentioned venue at Charing Cross remains their only active location at the time of writing.
SideQuest Gamers Hubs
A quick match of EA Sports FC? An afternoon of battling it out with a bunch of players in the newest Counter-Strike? Or maybe you were just feeling in need of a bit of relaxation and social contact? Whatever it was you were looking for, as a gamer and UK esports fan, you can be pretty sure that you will find it at one of SideQuest’s Gamers Hubs. Although now we have to say “Gamer Hub”, as the company has closed all nut one of its locations. You can still play games and make friends at their Charing Cross location in London, but the SideQuest Gamers Hubs at Canterbury, Coventry and Elephant Park have been permanently closed on Sunday, November 30th, 2025.
“Hi Everyone”, Sidequest writes on their own Instagram account, “It is with an exceptionally heavy heart that we have to make this difficult announcement. The following three SideQuest locations will be permanently closing on November 30th 2025: SideQuest Elephant Park, SideQuest Coventry, SideQuest Canterbury […] To everyone who walked through our doors: Whether once or a hundred times, we thank you so much for being part of our story. Thank you for the incredible energy, the unwavering support, the late nights spent with us, and the amazing tournaments we shared.”
More than gaming
Since 2019, SideQuest grew its Gamers Hubs not only into spaced fitted for esports and gaming, with high-end gaming PCs, PlayStations and Nintendo Switches, but also into a social space. Every location also had a full bubble tea bar, for example, and dedicated spaces where people could organise their own tournaments and esports bootcamps.
“These venues were never just gaming spaces”, SideQuest continues, “They were meeting points and memory-makers. We’ve been privileged to watch strangers become regulars... And regulars become friends... […] While this chapter is closing, the memories will last. If you have any questions, concerns, existing bookings, or anything you need from us, please reach out [to us] directly.”
No official reason
The previously linked message on Instagram is the only statement SideQuest have made so far. We therefore don’t exactly know why the company has decided to close all but one of its Gamers Hubs in the United Kingdom. Looking at the industry as a whole and the social gaming sector specifically though, 2025 has clearly been a challenging year. Earlier this year, for example, a similar chain of esports spaces called Belong, who ran 23 locations in the UK before the COVID19 pandemic, had to close down almost entirely as well.