Chess World Gathers in London for FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Team Championships

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Chess World London

The chess world is heading to London! From June 10 to 16, the city will host the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships.

This major event brings together:

  • Top Grandmasters

  • Chess legends

  • Rising young talents

A Rapidly Growing Tournament

FIDE launched this event in 2023. It quickly gained popularity, drawing companies and organizations from around the world. Teams include both professional and amateur players.

In 2024, the Blitz format was added, which attracted even more participants and boosted the prize pool.

2025 Edition: Bigger Than Ever

This third edition features:

  • 54 teams

  • Each team has 9 players

  • At least 1 female player and 1 amateur (under 2000 FIDE rating) per team

💰 Total Prize Fund: €500,000

  • €310,000 for the Rapid

  • €190,000 for the Blitz

Star-Studded Lineup

A total of 116 Grandmasters will compete!

WR Chess Team leads the field:

  • Champions of Rapid 2023 and Blitz 2024

  • Led by GM Jan Gustafsson

  • Features top stars like:

    • Hikaru Nakamura (World No. 2)

    • Alireza Firouzja

    • Ian Nepomniachtchi

    • Wesley So

    • Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

    • Jan-Krzysztof Duda

    • Alexandra Kosteniuk & Hou Yifan (former Women’s World Champions)

  • Owner Wadim Rosenstein plays the amateur board

📈 Team Rating: Nearly 2700 average—clear favorites!

Other Powerful Teams

Hexamind – A new team with:

  • Levon Aronian

  • Leinier Dominguez

  • Anish Giri

  • Vidit Gujrathi

  • Volodar Murzin (2024 World Rapid Champion)

  • Panarin brothers: Platon (9), Mark (5)

KazChess (Kazakhstan) – Fielding:

  • Richard Rapport

  • Alexander Grischuk

  • Parham Maghsoodloo

Freedom – 2nd in Rapid 2023:

  • Led by GM Emil Sutovsky

  • Star player: Viswanathan Anand

  • Other players include:

    • Le Quang Liem

    • Samuel Sevian

    • Rauf Mamedov

    • Anna Muzychuk

Team MGD1 – Third place in 2023:

  • Arjun Erigaisi, Pentala Harikrishna

  • David Anton (Spain), Stavroula Tsolakidou (Greece)

Team Uzbekistan – Featuring national stars:

  • Nodirbek Abdusattorov

  • Javokhir Sindarov

  • Rustam Kasimdzhanov

Other top players include:

  • Boris Gelfand

  • Luke McShane

  • Nigel Short

  • Alexei Shirov

  • Shakhriyar Mamedyarov

Format & Schedule

Chess World London

🗓 June 11-13: World Rapid Teams Championship

  • 12-round Swiss

  • 4 rounds per day

  • Time control: 15 minutes + 10 seconds/move

🗓 June 14-15: World Blitz Teams Championship

  • Round-robin group stage → Knockouts

  • Top 16 teams move to knockout

  • Time control: 3 minutes + 2 seconds/move

A Big Step for Chess

London continues to grow as a major chess hub. After hosting the Global Chess League in 2024, this is another prestigious event.

FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich said:

“With nearly 60 teams, this event helps promote chess globally and build bridges among people.”

Watch the Action Live

📺 Live Streaming: FIDE’s YouTube channel
🎙 Commentary: GMs Daniel King & Jovanka Houska

📍 Venue: Novotel London West, Hammersmith, West London
🎟 Tickets: tickets.fide.com
🌐 Official site: worldrapidblitzteams2025.fide.com

Chess World London

Photos: Michal Walusza, Mark Livshitz, FIDE_chess
Source: FIDE CHESS NEWS

 

Warrior Chess Academy


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