8/8/2026 – Day four of the FIDE World University Team Championship Finals began away from the chessboard, as participants traded the playing hall for the mountains surrounding Almaty. Before the start of the quarterfinals, players had an opportunity to visit Shymbulak, one of the city’s best-known mountain destinations. After three intense days of group-stage competition, the morning excursion gave the students a chance to experience another side of Almaty and spend time together before returning to the tournament venue for the start of the knockout stage. A few hours later, attention turned firmly back to chess.

8/7/2026 – In this episode, Svitlana explains why controlling the centre remains important throughout every phase of a chess game. Using an instructive encounter between Vassily Ivanchuk and Anatoly Karpov, she shows how central control creates space, restricts the opponent’s pieces and provides clear plans. The game also demonstrates how powerful central pawns and an active king can become in the endgame, ultimately allowing Karpov to take control and win.

8/7/2026 – In the diagram position White has a powerful knight e5, plus active rooks on the d- and f-file. Now all that's left is to bring the queen a6 into the attack - the question is, how?

8/7/2026 – Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu won the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz after leading the tournament from start to finish. The Indian grandmaster secured the title with a round to spare by holding Javokhir Sindarov in their penultimate-round encounter, before finishing 1½ points clear. The result moved Praggnanandhaa into second place in the Grand Chess Tour standings ahead of the Sinquefield Cup. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Grand Chess Tour

8/7/2026 – At the Dutch Open in Dieren many interesting games were played, including several GOTW candidates. Especially the seventh round was a bloody affair with decisive results at the first five boards. My old friend Rick Lahaye (2394) played a positional masterpiece against IM Harshavardhan (2508). Without wanting to spoil too much, it's the perfect example of playing with a classical Nimzowitsch blockading knight and its longterm power. Merijn's show is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.

8/7/2026 – Today, for a change, there's a little quiz on the Two Knights Defence - let's see if you know all the names!

8/4/2026 – Dear chess friends! We’ve got another great offer for you: this week (until August 9th, 2026), you can get over 25% off all Fritz Trainer courses by Ivan Sokolov!

8/4/2026 – Do you know the feeling? You often come out of the opening with a promising position, only to struggle to convert your advantage because you do not fully understand the resulting middlegame. Jochen Schwarz, a club player from Bremen, wants to improve this aspect of his game and has enlisted Ivan Sokolov as his "coach" through the video series Understanding Middlegame Strategies. In the third and final part of his review, he looks at three courses (12 to 14) devoted to reversed-colour openings and their strategic characteristics, hoping to gain a better understanding of how to meet these systems with the black pieces.

8/4/2026 – Defending champion Matthias Bluebaum remains among the leaders in the A Open after claiming his third win in as many games, with the leading group now reduced to seven players. The second German in the top seven is IM Luka Schwitkowski. Rasmus Svane, meanwhile, has dropped out of the leading group after conceding half a point against Ebrahim Ahmadinia. In the International Women's Tournament, both Song Yuxin and Dinara Wagner, as well as tournament leader Nataliya Buksa (pictured) and Klaudia Kulon, agreed draws. | Photos: Dariusz Gorzinski

8/4/2026 – 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?

8/4/2026 – The bishop blocks the road: Pure opposite colored bishop endings have a large drawish tendency. So Black's way to win is very narrow: Black to move and win.

8/4/2026 – Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu remained in sole first place after six rounds of the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz, extending his lead to 2 points over Javokhir Sindarov. The Indian GM defeated Awonder Liang and drew his other two games on day two, including a 117-move encounter with Wesley So. Despite several missed opportunities and fluctuating positions, only two of the day's games ended decisively. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Grand Chess Tour