Magnus Carlsen during a match at the Tata Steel Chess India Rapid and Blitz at the Dhono Dhonyo Auditorium in Kolkata. (Express photo by Partha Paul)
Magnus Carlsen will headline the Esports World Cup next year in Saudi Arabia as chess makes it debut at the event.
The Esports World Cup will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from July 31 to August 3, 2025. Some of the world’s top chess players will be competing for a massive $1.5 million prize pool. The Esports World Cup (EWC) is the world’s largest gaming and esports festival.
It is learnt that Carlsen will join the Esports World Cup as an ambassador.
“I’m thrilled to see chess join some of the biggest games in the world at the Esports World Cup. This partnership is an incredible opportunity to grow the game, by introducing chess to new audiences and inspiring the next generation of players. Being part of the esports family is an amazing opportunity for chess to broaden its reach to a massive group of esports fans,” Carlsen was quoted as saying by Chess.com.
Chess’ entry into the Esports World Cup comes by way of a partnership between Chess.com and Carlsen on one hand and the Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) on the other hand.
How will chess players qualify for Esports World Cup?
A report on Chess.com stated that 2025 Champions Chess Tour will act as the “primary pathway for the world’s best players to qualify for the EWC Championship”.
2025 will see two online Tour events, in February and May. At these events, besides the combined $300,000 prize pool, players will earn a chance to compete on the world’s biggest esports stage.
The top 12 players from the CCT and four additional players from a “Last Chance Qualifier” (LCQ) will be competing for the prizes.
The CCT in 2025 will have a new tweaked format, which is designed for esports fan. Matches will have a time control of 10 minutes for the entire game, without any increment. Tiebreakers will be decided by a single Armageddon game.
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