The top cities for online mahjong
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Call it the "Mahjong Belt" — a swath of mostly Southern cities leads the country in online mahjong player density and growth, new data shows.
State of play: Lafayette, Louisiana, is the U.S. "mahjong capital," according to online platform Mahjong 4 Friends' analysis of user data.
- Player density is highest in Charleston, South Carolina, Atlanta, and Orlando, Florida, with over 50 active players per 1,000 residents in the past year.
What they're saying: "The South has a strong table-game and hospitality culture, so we suspect mahjong is folding easily into a social fabric that was already there," Neal Taparia, co-founder of Mahjong 4 Friends, tells Axios.
- Yes, but: The South's glitzy take on IRL mahjong has its critics.
The big picture: The centuries-old Chinese tile game is sweeping the country as younger generations and Southern transplants fuel new growth.
- A staple among Asian families and later beloved by Jewish communities, mahjong has more than 40 global variations — including an American one that started on the East Coast before spreading in recent years to the South, Midwest and beyond.
Reality check: Online play may be surging, per Mahjong 4 Friends, which counted nearly 1.8 million U.S. players in the past year. But not everyone plays virtually.
- For many players, gathering around a real table is part of the appeal.
What we're watching: Where the "Mahjong Belt" stretches next. Omaha, Nebraska, Louisville, Kentucky, and St. Louis are the fastest-growing mahjong cities on the platform.
