8/1/2025 – The 19th Amber Blindfold and Rapid Tournament, held in Nice from 13 to 25 March 2010, saw a gripping duel between 19-year-old Magnus Carlsen, who had just become the highest-rated player in the world, and Ukrainian star Vasyl Ivanchuk, the only player to take part in all editions of the event. Both finished on 14½/22 points, but their paths to victory differed: Ivanchuk remained unbeaten throughout, while Carlsen played uncompromisingly, drawing only 3 out of 22 games. | All photos: Nadja Wittmann

7/31/2025 – Not only does Liverpool have a great musical history, it also has a great chess history. Its chess club was founded in 1837, and one of its early luminaries was Amos Burn. The city is now hosting the British Championships (31 August–10 September), a major chess festival featuring the best players and greatest British talent. | Photos: English Chess Federation

7/31/2025 – Day two of the 2025 Esports World Cup chess tournament concluded the group stage, with Ian Nepomniachtchi, Nihal Sarin, Hikaru Nakamura and Nodirbek Abdusattorov advancing from the Losers Brackets to complete the quarterfinal lineup. Each won two matches to stay in contention for the $250,000 first prize. Meanwhile, eight players - including Giri, Vachier-Lagrave and Caruana - were eliminated. The remaining participants are now guaranteed at least $85,000 as the knockout phase begins. | Photos: Esports World Cup

7/31/2025 – Two-time Under-18 World Champion Aleksey Grebnev won the strong Oskemen Masters in eastern Kazakhstan. After an impressive win in the last round, in which he showed his endgame skills, Grebnev shared first with top seed Richard Rapport. Both had 7.0/9, but Grebnev had the better tiebreak and won the tournament. | Photo: Aleksey Grebnev at the Dubai Open in June 2025 - which he also won. | Photo: Dubai Chess & Culture Club

7/31/2025 – The Clash of Generations match in Marseille between veteran grandmaster Peter Svidler and 14-year-old Yagız Kaan Erdogmus concluded with a 4-2 classical victory for the Turkish prodigy, who impressed with strong preparation and mature play. Svidler responded by dominating the blitz section 10–2. The event offered a structured 6-game classical match followed by a 12-game blitz segment, highlighting contrasting strengths across formats and marking a milestone in Erdogmus's rapid rise. | Photo: Mark Livshitz / FIDE

7/30/2025 – The Women's Candidates Tournament 2026 is scheduled to take place in April 2026. The winner will play reigning Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun for the title. Currently, five players are qualified for the Candidates: Humpy Koneru, Tan Zhongyi, Divya Deshmukh, Zhu Jiner, and Aleksandra Goryachkina. But who has the best chances of claiming one of the three remaining spots? Here's an update from FIDE.

7/30/2025 – The traditional chess festival in Dortmund kicks off its 52nd edition this Saturday as the Sparkassen Chess Trophy. European champion Matthias Blübaum is the favourite in the A Open. On Sunday, the International Women's Tournament begins, featuring four grandmasters: Elisabeth Pähtz, Dinara Wagner, 15-year-old Chinese champion Miaoyi Lu, and Deimanté Daulyté-Cornette of France. | Photo: Elisabeth Pähtz and Dinara Wagner

7/30/2025 – The 2025 Esports World Cup chess tournament began on Tuesday in Riyadh, with four players advancing directly to the quarterfinals from the upper bracket of their respective groups. Magnus Carlsen, Alireza Firouzja, Arjun Erigaisi and Levon Aronian each won two matches to secure qualification. The remaining twelve players will now compete in the Losers Bracket, where only one from each group will progress to the knockout stage of the $1.5 million event. | Photos: Esports World Cup

7/29/2025 – In the Endgame Magic Show #305, Karsten Müller shows endgames from the Freestyle Tournament in Las Vegas.| You can watch the Endgame Magic Show on-demand with a ChessBase Premium account.

7/29/2025 – The winner of the 2025 Women's World Cup was decided in an exciting play-off between Humpy Koneru and Divya Deshmukh. Divya Deshmukh ultimately emerged victorious. Tin Zhangyi won the match for third place against Lei Tingjie. The awards ceremony took place on Monday evening in a festive atmosphere. | Photos: Anna Shtourman

7/29/2025 – The Biel Chess Festival is one of the most important traditional tournaments, with an unbroken history stretching back over 58 years. Vladimir Fedoseev won the Masters tournament, Nikolas Theodorou won the Challengers tournament, and Karthikeyan Murali won the Masters Open tournament. On the last day of the tournament, the winners of these and other tournaments were honoured. | Photos: Biel Chess Festival

7/29/2025 – The 2nd Dole Trophy Pasino Grand Aix 2025 brought together over 400 players from more than 40 countries for a 9-round Swiss tournament held in Aix-en-Provence, France. With a prize fund exceeding €30,000 and a strong Masters section featuring over 100 titled players, the event concluded with a rapid playoff between GM Iniyan Panneerselvam and GM Jan Malek. Iniyan emerged victorious after scoring 1½–½ in the tie-break. | Photos: Shahid Ahmed / ChessBase India