Haven't seen any issue with Meetup in the UK that isn't explained by the pandemic, and it seems to be active enough and on an upward trajectory back to pre levels.
I'm unaware of a competitor; Facebook and other public fora like Reddit lack privacy and professionalism (the latter I presume encouraged by Meetup fees).
Discord and closed fora etc lack professionalism and mainstream ingress.
Perhaps the situation in other regions and particular demographics is different, as the OP indicates. But it seems fine here.
I'm unaware of a competitor; Facebook and other public fora like Reddit lack privacy and professionalism (the latter I presume encouraged by Meetup fees).
Discord and closed fora etc lack professionalism and mainstream ingress.
Perhaps the situation in other regions and particular demographics is different, as the OP indicates. But it seems fine here.