It's not just board games BTW. I used to play volleyball a lot. Yes, I played competitively, with strenuous drills during the week and tournaments on the weeken

It's not just board games BTW. I used to play volleyball a lot. Yes, I played competitively, with strenuous drills during the week and tournaments on the weekends. But I also played pickup, and that was almost entirely social. I've gotten a bit of that with tennis too, but never played that as much. Now I'm in two pickleball groups. One is kind of competitive, but the other is a mix of "let's improve together" and pure socializing. They're both fun. So I sort of disagree with the OP. The point of a game is what the participants want it to be. Yes, it can be something other than winning, but if it is winning that's OK too.