5/21/2025 – Following round four of the Sharjah Masters, Anish Giri (pictured) and Aleksandar Indjic are sharing the lead with 3½ points. Ten players are in close pursuit, just half a point behind, including both pre-tournament favourites and lower-rated contenders. Meanwhile, 11-year-old Faustino Orocontinues to perform well against experienced opponents, as he has collected an undefeated 2½ score so far. | Photos: Himank Ghosh / ChessBase India

5/20/2025 – During the Grenke Chess Open in Karlsruhe, nearly 3,000 players gathered to compete in either classical chess or the freestyle variant. It was an ideal opportunity to find out how accurately the participants could assess their own chess expertise. Arne Kaehler interviewed more than 50 players listed in the MegaDatabase, asking them to rate themselves in opening theory, playing style (aggressive or positional), and how often they reach endgames in their careers.

5/20/2025 – The Play-In stage of the Chess.com Classic was held on Monday and decided the final eight players who qualified for the upcoming Playoffs. Vladimir Fedoseev secured first place in the nine-round Swiss event and advanced directly. Seven others - Arjun, Caruana, Praggnanandhaa, Aronian, Duda, Artemiev and Lazavik - earned their spots through two-game matches. They will join eight invited grandmasters (pictured) in the next stage, which runs from 20 to 23 May

5/20/2025 – Pawn endings are often tricky and require precise calculation. In the diagram position it is White to move and win. What should he do?

5/19/2025 – The TePe Sigeman & Co Chess Tournament returns to Malmö this May, bringing together a carefully selected mix of seasoned grandmasters and emerging talents, this year including the likes of Richard Rapport, Vasyl Ivanchuk, Nils Grandelius (pictured) and Turkish rising star Yagiz Erdogmus. Known for its thoughtful organisation and competitive format, the event continues its recent focus on promoting top female players, with Tan Zhongyi joining the 2025 edition. | Photo: Mikael Svensson

5/19/2025 – Welcome to The Initiative – a show dedicated to the relentless battle for momentum in chess! In every game, players fight to seize control, dictate the pace, and keep their opponent on the back foot. But what does it really mean to have the initiative? How do the world’s best players maintain pressure and transform small advantages into crushing attacks?

5/19/2025 – In ChnessBase Magazine, our team of authors regularly explores new ideas and current trends in opening theory. CBM #225 once again offers ten opening articles – from a Dutch setup against the London System to 9...Bg4 in the Alapin Sicilian to the Queen's Indian with 8.Bd2. In his theory article, Robert Ris examines Gukesh's 7.a3!? in the Classical System of the French Defense – a "useful waiting move" that opens up various options for Black while simultaneously giving him the chance to make an early mistake. Ris' starting point is game 13 of the World Championship match between Gukesh and Ding Liren at the end of last year. The IM from the Netherlands also analyses two games by Magnus Carlsen, who adopted Gukesh's idea just a few days later against Nepomniachtchi. You can check out the article with all the analyses in this week's free CBM sample. Don't miss it!

5/19/2025 – In the Endgame Magic Show #298, Karsten Müller continues to analyse endgames from the Women's World Championship match between Ju Wenjun and Tan Zhongyi. Defending champion Ju Wenjun won the match 6.5-2.5 and impressed with her endgame skills. | You can watch the Endgame Magic Show on-demand with a ChessBase Premium account.

5/19/2025 – The 2025 Sharjah Masters has drawn 82 chess players with ratings ranging from 2453 to 2771, offering a platform for elite grandmasters and rising talents to compete for a $15,000 prize. After two rounds, several unexpected outcomes have highlighted the event's competitive nature, with lesser-known players such as Dai Changren and Visakh N R (pictured) taking the lead alongside 2024 European champion Aleksandar Indjic. Meanwhile, 11-year-old Faustino Oro has delivered a standout performance, and Bibisara Assaubayeva has emerged as the top-performing female player thus far. | Photos: Himank Ghosh / ChessBase India

5/18/2025 – GM Daneshvar Bardiya of Iran and IM Song Yuxin of China emerged as the champions of the 2025 Asian Chess Championship, held on 6-15 May at the Danat Resort Hotel in Al Ain, UAE. Bardiya claimed gold in the open section with 7/9 points, edging out top seed Nihal Sarin on tiebreaks. In the women's section, Song Yuxin secured the title after a tightly contested final round, prevailing based on the highest average opponent rating. | Photos: Asian Chess Federation

5/18/2025 – In his new Fast & Furious show, Robert Ris looks at the encounter between Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and World Champion Gukesh at the Superbet Classic in Bucharest. Gukesh tried a popular line in the Scotch, but things soon went wrong for the World Champion. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.

5/18/2025 – When you are on the move, it is particularly important that your computer does not consume too much power when analysing. With ChessBase 18, you can conserve your battery and connect to top-quality hardware via a remote engine whenever you need it. This means that the engine installed on your computer can remain off and the computing power is provided by an Internet server. But there are advantages at home too: the wide selection is sure to include engines that are more powerful than the one on your own computer, and the fan stays quiet. In this tutorial series, you will learn how convenient and resource-efficient you can analyse with your engine of choice.