12/17/2025 – Momentum changed suddenly on the third day of the Global Chess League in Mumbai, as the early leaders were brought back into a tightly packed field. All three matches produced decisive results, reshaping the standings and leaving four teams level at the top. The day featured a notable top-board victory by Vishy Anand over Gukesh Dommaraju in the battle of Indian world champions, while Alireza Firouzja maintained his perfect start, extending his run to three wins from three games. | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy

12/16/2025 – The Global Chess League began with a clear early hierarchy, as two teams emerged with perfect records after the first two days of action. Defending champion Triveni Continental Kings and upGrad Mumba Masters both secured back-to-back victories, while the remaining teams experienced mixed fortunes. The top scorers for the leading teams are Alireza Firouzja (Continental Kings), Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Bardiya Daneshvar (Mumba Masters), who have won both their games in Mumbai. | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy

12/15/2025 – The Global Chess League began its third season in Mumbai with three matches played in succession at the Royal Opera House. Day one combined a revised time control with the league's established scoring system and immediately produced several high-profile encounters on the top boards. Defending champions Triveni Continental Knights, led by Alireza Firouzja (who defeated Fabiano Caruana), opened with a win, much like Upgrad Mumba Masters and Fyers American Gambits. | Photo: Official website

12/14/2025 – The 11th edition of the Vugar Gashimov Memorial was held in Khankendi as a combined rapid and blitz tournament featuring six players. Organised in memory of the late Azerbaijani grandmaster, the event followed a double round-robin format in both sections, with the overall standings determined by combined results. A closely fought contest at the top between rating favourites Ian Nepomniachtchi and Vladimir Fedoseev was only decided on tiebreaks after the final blitz round. | Photo: Official website

12/14/2025 – Round six of the Magistral Szmetan-Giardelli featured three decisive games and several notable results. Aryan Tari and Ivan Cheparinov both scored full points to reach 4½ points, while 14-year-old Ilan Schnaider (pictured) claimed a swift victory over Julio Granda for his second win of the tournament. The round also included two draws, leaving Faustino Oro and Alexei Shirov a half point behind the co-leaders with three rounds to play. | Photo: Infobae

12/14/2025 – The Tech Mahindra Global Chess League returns for its third season from 14 to 23 December, continuing its franchise-based format that combines elite male and female players in the same teams. Featuring a $1,000,000 prize fund and a joint team structure with fixed lineups, the league again brings together established stars and juniors, with the title to be decided through a double round-robin stage followed by a two-match final.

12/13/2025 – Nihal Sarin claimed a convincing victory at the Masters Tournament at the 4th President Cup in Tashkent, finishing on 7/9 and securing first place with a round to spare. A final-round win underlined his dominance, as he ended two points clear of the field. The tournament continued Nihal's strong run in Uzbekistan and brought a notable rating gain, as he concluded the event with a sensational 2836 TPR. | Photo: Uzbek Chess Federation

12/12/2025 – In a recent "Ask Me Anything" session organised by FIDE, Hou Yifan addressed a wide range of questions from chess fans, touching on her competitive career, views on elite play and her current relationship with the game. The discussion also covered her academic path, advice for younger players and her approach to balancing chess with other pursuits. | Photo: FIDE

12/12/2025 – Levon Aronian won the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals in South Africa after defeating Magnus Carlsen in a controlled 1½–½ match, securing the event's $200,000 top prize. The final brought the four-day competition to a close, with Vincent Keymer taking third place against Javokhir Sindarov. Further down the table, Fabiano Caruana beat Arjun Erigaisi to finish fifth, while Hans Niemann prevailed over Parham Maghsoodloo in the match for seventh place. | Pictured: Levon Aronian with wife Anita Ayvazyan and their daughter | Photo: Freestyle Chess / Lennart Ootes

12/11/2025 – Day three of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals in South Africa clarified the lineup for Thursday's concluding matches. Magnus Carlsen and Levon Aronian advanced to the championship decider after winning their respective semifinals, while Javokhir Sindarov and Vincent Keymer will contest third place. In the lower bracket, Fabiano Caruana and Arjun Erigaisi secured victories to reach the fifth-place match, leaving Hans Niemann and Parham Maghsoodloo to compete for seventh. | Photo: Freestyle Chess / Lennart Ootes

12/10/2025 – The second day of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals in South Africa marked the start of the knockout phase, with four quarterfinal matches played under a 30+15 time control. Two encounters were settled in the first pair of games, while the other two required blitz tiebreaks. Magnus Carlsen, Javokhir Sindarov, Vincent Keymer and Levon Aronian advanced to the semifinals, while the defeated players moved to the lower bracket to compete for fifth to eighth place. | Photo: Freestyle Chess / Lennart Ootes

12/9/2025 – Diego Flores claimed his eighth national title at the 2025 Argentine Championship, matching Miguel Najdorf's long-standing record in the event's centenary edition. The 12-player round-robin, held at Buenos Aires City Hall, saw Flores finish unbeaten with 8½/11, securing victory after a final-round draw against Federico Pérez Ponsa. Strong performances by Diego Valerga, Leonardo Tristán and 12-year-old IM Faustino Oro added further significance to this historic edition. | Photo: Argentine Chess Federation (FADA)

12/8/2025 – The opening stage of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals in South Africa consisted of a single round-robin tournament with a 10+5 time control. Although no players were eliminated, the results were of clear importance: they decide the quarterfinal pairings. Javokhir Sindarov, fresh from his victory at the FIDE World Cup, was the top scorer, as he obtained 5½/7 points, with wins over Magnus Carlsen, Parham Maghsoodloo, Fabiano Caruana and Hans Niemann. The Uzbek star achieved this feat on his 20th birthday. | Photo: Freestyle Chess / Lennart Ootes

12/8/2025 – After four rounds of the President Cup in Tashkent, three players share the lead on 3/4: Nihal Sarin, Shamsiddin Vokhidov and Mukhiddin Madaminov. Their identical paths, combined with a striking trend of all decisive games favouring white, have given the event a notably symmetrical start. With Shant Sargsyan and Bardiya Daneshvar close behind and key pairings scheduled for round five, the tournament is entering an important early phase. | Photo: Uzbek Chess Federation

12/6/2025 – All five games in the final round of the London Chess Classic ended drawn, leaving the standings unchanged following Nodirbek Abdusattorov's clear tournament victory with a round to spare. The Uzbek grandmaster finished with an outstanding 7½/9 and a 2932 performance rating, while Alireza Firouzja (pictured) secured second place despite missing a late winning chance against Nikolas Theodorou. Nikita Vitiugov completed the podium after a steady event that included two wins following an early setback. | Photo: John Saunders

12/5/2025 – Nodirbek Abdusattorov secured the London Chess Classic title with a round to spare after drawing his eighth-round game against Alireza Firouzja. Entering the day with a two-point lead built on six consecutive wins, the Uzbek grandmaster navigated a sharp position more accurately before choosing to force a perpetual check, confirming overall victory. It was the only draw of the round, with all other games ending decisively. | Photo: nodirbekchess.com

12/5/2025 – The fourth President Cup opened in Tashkent with a round marked by five decisive results, all in favour of the white pieces. With Uzbekistan's top grandmasters absent, the spotlight fell on emerging local talents and a strong group of international participants. The first day saw a couple of upsets, steady wins by some of the top seeds and a competitive start to the 10-player single round-robin. | Pictured: Shant Sargsyan from Armenia | Photo: Uzbek Chess Federation

12/4/2025 – Arjun Erigaisi claimed the Jerusalem Masters title after a tightly contested knockout stage that featured four seasoned competitors emerging from the round-robin phase. The tournament winner edged Viswanathan Anand in a blitz tiebreak after their rapid games ended level, while Peter Svidler secured third place by defeating Ian Nepomniachtchi. | Photo: Official website / Yoav Nis