World Chess Championship Puns

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Nepomniachtchi 0-1 Carlsen

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Chess Championship 2021"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2021.12.07"] [Round "09"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2856"] [TimeControl "5400+30"]

1. c4 e6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 d4 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. O-O Bc5 6. d3 Nf6 7. Nbd2 a5 8. Nb3 Be7 9. e3 dxe3 10. Bxe3 Ng4 11. Bc5 O-O 12. d4 a4 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Nc5 a3 15. bxa3 Rd8 16. Nb3 Nf6 17. Re1 Qxa3 18. Qe2 h6 19. h4 Bd7 20. Ne5 Be8 21. Qe3 Qb4 22. Reb1 Nxe5 23. dxe5 Ng4 24. Qe1 Qxe1+ 25. Rxe1 h5 26. Bxb7 Ra4 27. c5 c6 28. f3 Nh6 29. Re4 Ra7 30. Rb4 Rb8 31. a4 Raxb7 32. Rb6 Rxb6 33. cxb6 Rxb6 34. Nc5 Nf5 35. a5 Rb8 36. a6 Nxg3 37. Na4 c5 38. a7 Rd8 39. Nxc5 Ra8 0-1 [/pgn]

• Magnus Carlsen wins Game 9 with the black pieces, capitalizing on Ian Nepomniachtchi's major blunder on move 27. With five games to go, the defending champion leads 6-3. -- FIDE

• "I don’t think there is a single chess player, who is not sorry for Ian right now…" -- Grzegorz Gajewski

• Judit Polgar: "He [Nepomniachtchi] has to somehow forget about this as soon as possible. These are the nightmares of chess players..."

• Kasparov lost three in a row in 1986. Smyslov losing three of the first four in 1954 is another example. It is hard to keep control of yourself in these matches. There have been plenty of breakdowns in the longer matches. It goes with the format. -- Mark Crowther

Carlsen 1-0 Nepomniachtchi

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Chess Championship 2021"] [Site "?"] [Date "2021.12.05"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C43"] [WhiteElo "2856"] [BlackElo "2782"] [Annotator "samsh"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2021.??.??"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.12.05"]

1. e4 e5 {Annotations by GM Sam Shankland} 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. d4 Nxe4 4. Bd3 d5 5. Nxe5 Nd7 6. Nxd7 Bxd7 7. Nd2 $5 {This is a very rare move with basically no games played by anyone notable, but it's actually quite a bit more challenging than it looks. It's funny that White aims to make the game more symmetrical in the Petroff as an attempt to fight for an advantage, but in this particular case, it does seem quite challenging.} 7... Nxd2 8. Bxd2 {Now, Nepo played Bd6 very quickly, but I already think this is a mistake.} 8... Bd6 $2 (8... Qe7+ $1 {I think this surprising move is the best way to fight for equality. White has to move his king to avoid a queen exchange.} 9. Kf1 (9. Be3 {I suppose this is possible too, but after} 9... Qb4+ 10. Qd2 Qxd2+ 11. Kxd2 Bd6 $11 {Black should be totally fine in spite of the machine's insistence on +0.2.}) 9... O-O-O {Black should be okay here. I suspect Magnus was aiming for this position and found some interesting way to coordinate his pieces that makes Black find some move or two, but it's hard to imagine Black can really have too many major issues here. At least the opposite-side castling allows for some dynamism.}) 9. O-O {Now, suddenly things do not look so easy for Black. He cannot castle due to Qh5, winning a pawn, and otherwise Re1+ is coming.} 9... h5 $1 {This strikes me as the best practical decision. Black keeps the queen off of h5, and can hope for Qh4 to come next. Then, it will be a bit annoying for White to stop the mate threat since g2-g3 will eventually walk into h5-h4.} 10. Qe1+ $6 {This is soft. I was very surprised by this move pair—White allows Qe7, which should equalize easily, and then

Anatoly Karpov 1995 Amber Rapid

Karpov at the Amber Rapid 1995 at age 44 ran rampant, won his first 6 games and finished with 9 wins, 2 draws and 0 losses to finish with 10/11.

Amber Rapid 1995

Amber Rapid 1995 game section on chessgames

He beat Kramnik, Nunn, Ivanchuk, Kamsky, Ljubojevic, Polgar, Piket, Lautier and Shirov.

World Ranking of Karpov's opponents at the time (according to chessmetrics)

(1) Anand : world #3

(2) Kamsky : world #4

(3) Ivanchuk : world #5

(4) Kramnik : world #6

(5) Shirov : world #8

(6) Lautier : world #18

(7) Nikolic : world #19

(8) Polgar : world #21

(9) Piket :world #27

(10) Nunn : world #50

(11) Ljubojevic : world #64

March 1995 World rankings

And the last 2 players were former top 10 players.

This was like the Rapid chess version of what Karpov did in Linares 1994

Extra note:

Mamedyarov, Karjakin, Carlsen (x2) also have an impressive 11.5/15 (+8) in the World Rapid championship. Very good but not quite good enough to crack this list.

I also checked some of the Grand Chess tour events and I didnt see anything eye-popping.

If you guys have Rapid performance you think is better , please let me know.

I’ve been watching the World Chess Championship between Magnus Carlson and Ian Nepomniachtchi. The games were exciting even for a chess noob like me, but what amazed me was the attention it received and the excitement of the viewers both online and offline.

Why can’t Go have such an event? Why can’t Go receive the same much of attention? What is lacking?

Lack of fans? Lack of sponsors? Lack of good commentators? Lack of good organizers?

We already have many exciting Go games. I really hope that one day we will have an event that will receive as much attention as the World Chess Championship.

This is an old news but the implications it should have are huge.

The Official World Chess Championship Set would be created as an NFT which will be minted on Algorand. This has already been announced. The opportunities that this announcement opens are immense- they can create an NFT of basically every enitity involved from players to process to things. Imagine a tournament defining move being digitised to an NFT.

They also can, going forward, provide prizes to the world champion/ and runner ups in the form of ALGO or its own tokens.

They have organized a few chess tournaments themselves, the records of which are logged into the Algorand blockchain itself. The winners would get real valued prize like subscription to the FIDE online arena; a trip to the tournament.

This partnership between a world renowned organization and Algorand is going fairly unnoticed. That said- it certainly is a stepping stone for our coin and that it has the potential to catapult the user adoption.

A fitting partnership for a smart and efficient blockchain.

Magnus had finished OR 10 in the 2019-20 FPL season after holding the live #1 spot around December. 🤯

He faces Russian Super GM Ian Nepomniachtchi as the challenger in a 14 game Classical time format match. First game starts today @ 13:00 CET.

You can catch the live stream here: https://youtu.be/ZcW-n-AzTAI

So here is the place we can list contenders' seconds (completing the puzzle as more info will appear)

Team Magnus:

Confirmed:

- Peter Heine Nielsen [Denmark, 2618] - coach of Anand and, since 2013, of Magnus (source)

Unconfirmed:

- Laurent Fressinet [France, 2630] - longtime Magnus second since 2016 - (source)

- Jon Ludvig Hammer [Norway, 2608] - Magnus second in 2013

- Jan Gustafsson [Germany, 2643] - Magnus second against Karjakin and renowned opening expert

Team Ian:

Confirmed:

- Sergiej Karjakin [Russia, 2743] - Magnus' rival from 2016 match (source)

- Vladimir Potkin [Russia, 2571] - longtime Ian's coach (source)

- Peter Leko [Hungary, 2663] - 2004 match challenger (vs Kramnik) (source)

Unconfirmed:

- Teimour Radjabov [Azerbaijan, 2763]

If you have other tips, put them in comments !

For over a century, the World Championship has been the most prestigious match in the chess world. Unsurprisingly, those who participate in this spectacle are handsomely rewarded as fans from every country watch the world’s best players vie for the most coveted title in chess. However, the multimillion dollar stakes today are a far cry from the humble origins of the WCC. The burgeoning purse of the WCC reflects not only the surge of interest in chess as a sport, but also the development of chess as an economic institution.

WCC prize funds adjusted for inflation. Matches without financial data are excluded

The Beginnings of the WCC (1886 - 1948)

As many are aware, early WCC matches were independently negotiated between participants. This meant that the responsibility of organizing the prize money fell on the players themselves, and there were several different ways that players would go about raising the necessary funds. Some players, such as Janowski, were able to find wealthy patrons to sponsor them. Others, such as Lasker, were able to crowdfund money from passionate amateurs. While large-scale, state-sponsored chess programs had not yet begun, players like Bogoljubov were also able to get government ministries to partially cover their expenses. The large stakes associated with the WCC were not easy to raise, and several negotiations fell apart after the players disagreed on the financial aspects of the match. The prize funds during this era ranged from $30,000 to $400,000 (2021 USD).

However, the matches were more lucrative than the graph would suggest, especially for the World Champion. Players who held the title also held enormous leverage over negotiations, and as such, they would often demand large fees simply for playing. In his 1908 match against Tarrasch, Lasker demanded an appearance fee of 7,500 marks, which was more than the prize fund of 6,500 marks. It was also customary for organizers to cover the cost of travel and lodging for both players. Lastly, both players often received a cut of the ticket sales from spectators, which makes it difficult to accurately assess the value of the WCC.

It was Capablanca who would make the first attempts to establish formal procedures for the WCC. While playing in the 1922 London tournament, Capablanca created a list of conditions for future WCC matches that all the t

Seeing how the press is somewhat under fire for having bad questions during the world championships as “How does the horse move?” Or “what’s your opinion on Hikaru claiming he’s the best in online bullet chess” during a rapid&blitz tournament. What’s some questions you’d rather hear?

I don't hate Yan +325 tbh. Decent odds.

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 standard games. The first player to reach 7½ points will be the World Champion of Chess.

• At the opening ceremony, a drawing of colors determines who will start with the white pieces.

• The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61.

• If the scores are level after the regular 14 games, four tie-break games will be played. These are rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.

• If it's still equal, two blitz games will be played (5 minutes plus 3 seconds increment), followed by another pair of blitz games if needed. If there is still no winner after five such matches, one sudden-death game will be played. The player who wins the drawing of lots may choose the color. The player with the white pieces shall receive 5 minutes, the player with the black pieces shall receive 4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move, both players shall receive an increment of 3 seconds starting from move 61. In case of a draw, the player with the black pieces is declared the winner.

• The players cannot draw a game by agreement before Black's 40th move. A claim for a draw before Black's 40th move is permitted only through one of the arbiters in the cases of a threefold repetition.

####Schedule

Nepomniachtchi ½-½ Carlsen

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Chess Championship 2021"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2021.12.04"] [Round "07"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [TimeControl "5400+30"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 d6 11. d3 h6 12. Nc3 Re8 13. Nd5 Bf8 14. Nxf6+ Qxf6 15. c3 Ne7 16. Be3 Be6 17. d4 exd4 18. cxd4 Bxb3 19. Qxb3 Ng6 20. Rec1 c5 21. e5 Qf5 22. dxc5 dxc5 23. Bxc5 Bxc5 24. Rxc5 Nxe5 25. Nxe5 Rxe5 26. Rxe5 Qxe5 27. Qc3 Qxc3 28. bxc3 Rc8 29. Ra5 Rxc3 30. Rxb5 Rc1+ 31. Kh2 Rc3 32. h4 g6 33. g3 h5 34. Kg2 Kg7 35. Ra5 Kf6 36. Rb5 Kg7 37. Ra5 Kf6 38. Rb5 Kg7 39. Ra5 Kf6 40. Ra6+ Kg7 41. Ra7 1/2-1/2 [/pgn]

• Magnus Carlsen has a 4:3 lead at the halfway point of the FIDE World Chess Championship match after a quiet draw — a well-earned rest after yesterday's madness! -- Chess24

Official Website

Follow the games here: Chess.com | Chess24 | Lichess

DUBAI | The wait is finally over. Norwegian grandmaster Magnus Carlsen’s fourth defence of the World Chess Championship title he won from Vishy Anand in 2013 will be played in the Dubai Exhibition Centre from November 24 to December 16. Carlsen's challenger is Russian grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi, the winner of the 2020/21 Candidates Tournament. The two-time Russian champion finished second in the 2019 FIDE Grand Prix, which qualified him for the Candidates Tournament that concluded in April 2021. Nepomniachtchi won the tournament with a round to spare, finishing at 8½/14.

The 14-game match, with a €2 million prize fund, is set to be held as part of Expo 2020 Dubai, a 6-month international event showcasing exhibits by almost 200 countries that was postponed from 2020 to October 2021 due to the pandemic. Commenting on the exciting match, Mohamed Al Ansaari, VP of Communications at Expo 2020, said: “Expo 2020 Dubai will be a global celebration of the very best of humankind, held in one of the world’s most welcoming and ambitious nations – what better place to host a thrilling showdown between the brightest minds in chess?"

FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich added: "The World Championship Match is an outstanding event, and we are proud to team up with Expo to create a breath-taking experience not only for the hardcore chess fans, but also for the wider audience. Ever since the first international tournament, held in London in 1851 as a part of the Great Exhibition, chess is strongly connected to the events epitomizing human's mind progress and strive for excellence."

####Scoreboard

####Format/Time Controls

• The match will be played over 14 stan

Carlsen ½-½ Nepomniachtchi

[pgn] [Event "Carlsen - Nepomniachtchi World Championship Match"] [Site "Dubai UAE"] [Date "2021.11.27"] [EventDate "2021.12.26"] [Round "2"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [White "Magnus Carlsen"] [Black "Ian Nepomniachtchi"] [ECO "E06"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2782"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 8. Ne5 c6 9. a4 Nd5 10. Nc3 f6 11. Nf3 Qd7 12. e4 Nb4 13. Qe2 Nd3 14. e5 Bb7 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Ne4 Na6 17. Ne5 Bxe5 18. dxe5 Nac5 19. Nd6 Nb3 20. Rb1 Nbxc1 21. Rbxc1 Nxc1 22. Rxc1 Rab8 23. Rd1 Ba8 24. Be4 c3 25. Qc2 g6 26. bxc3 bxa4 27. Qxa4 Rfd8 28. Ra1 c5 29. Qc4 Bxe4 30. Nxe4 Kh8 31. Nd6 Rb6 32. Qxc5 Rdb8 33. Kg2 a6 34. Kh3 Rc6 35. Qd4 Kg8 36. c4 Qc7 37. Qg4 Rxd6 38. exd6 Qxd6 39. c5 Qxc5 40. Qxe6+ Kg7 41. Rxa6 Rf8 42. f4 Qf5+ 43. Qxf5 Rxf5 44. Ra7+ Kg8 45. Kg4 Rb5 46. Re7 Ra5 47. Re5 Ra7 48. h4 Kg7 49. h5 Kh6 50. Kh4 Ra1 51. g4 Rh1+ 52. Kg3 gxh5 53. Re6+ Kg7 54. g5 Rg1+ 55. Kf2 Ra1 56. Rh6 Ra4 57. Kf3 Ra3+ 58. Kf2 Ra4 1/2-1/2 [/pgn]

• I’m not sure I understand the players’ sudden dislike of material in this game, but I do have an old personal bias for powerfully located knights in world championship games… - Garry Kasparov

• Nepo: "Well Ne5 was not the most popular move indeed, but it was a very nice idea behind it so I had a tough time facing this over the board." - Chess.com Live

• Very entertaining Game 2! Turns out however much material advantage you have against @MagnusCarlsen, he’ll still equalize by the end game!