12/6/2018 – In northern Germany children last night were polishing boots and setting them outside their front doors, expecting gifts from Saint Nicholas on December 6th. As a northern German company we want to participate in this tradition: today we offer a wonderful new 60 Minutes course by IM Lawrence Trent, The Sizzling Scotch Gambit, to our readers. Just go to the ChessBase Shop and download the course. Today it is fully free of charge!

11/28/2018 – The moment we've all been waiting for! Live games (for Premium members) from the 2018 World Championship match in London. Every two games will be followed by a rest day until Game 12 (if necessary) on November 26th which will be preceded by an additional rest day. All rounds start at 15:00 UT (London time) / 16:00 CEST / 10:00 EST. If needed there would be a rapid tiebreak match on Wednesday, November 28th. | Photos: Patricia Claros

11/16/2018 – Magnus Carlsen noted in the post-game press conference that "obviously 6.b4 wasn't new to me" and former World Champion VISWANATHAN ANAND agrees in his analysis of Game 5 for the next ChessBase Magazine. Here's a sneak peek and also a candid video interview with Anand on his victory in the blitz tournament of Tata Steel Chess India after a tiebreak match. | Photo: (left) World Chess / (right) Amruta Mokal

11/15/2018 – ChessBase is a personal, stand-alone chess database that has become the international standard for top players, from the World Champion to the amateur next door. The latest version, ChessBase 15, has now been released. It brings you spectacular new training features, all geared to improve your playing strength in the most enjoyable way possible. The program also generates beautiful ray-trace chess movies you can post on social media. Start your personal success story with ChessBase and enjoy your chess even more.

11/7/2018 – Norwegian Twitter translation trafficker Tarjei Svensen strikes again sampling another Carlsen interview, this time with VG. The tabloid newspaper spoke with the World Champ (in his native language) as he wrapped up preparations for the upcoming match with Fabiano Caruana. | Photos: Alina l'Ami Players.Chessbase.com

11/7/2018 – The annual Kings Tournament which, since last year, is held "in memoriam Elisabeta Polihroniade" is now in its 12th Edition. This time the tournament takes place solely in Bucharest from November 19th-21st. It will be an all-Romanian tournament — including players from the Romanian diaspora — in celebration of the country's centenary — December 1st marks 100 years after Unification Day, a holiday born in 1990 but referring to the unification of the provinces which occurred in 1918 in the aftermath of the First World War.

10/24/2018 – Thanks to Norwegian social media guru Tarjei Svensen you can read highlights of a recent hour-long podcast with World Champion Magnus Carlsen being interviewed (in his native language) by two of his closest friends. | Photos: Alina l'Ami Players.Chessbase.com

10/10/2018 – The Open Games begin after the moves 1.e4 e5. The name results from the fact that the position often opens quickly which might lead to an early clash of the enemy pieces. Typical examples are the Scotch Opening, the Two Knights Defence or the venerable King’s Gambit. But the most important openings after 1.e4 e5 are the Italian Game and the Ruy Lopez, and here the game often develops more slowly. On this DVD the International Master Georgios Souleidis presents these and all other relevant openings arising after 1.e4 e5 in 36 videos.

10/5/2018 – Closing ceremony, top Round 11 matches, final standings and commentary from the 43rd World Chess Olympiad taking place in Batumi, in the Republic of Georgia. China took gold in the Open followed by the USA (silver) and Russia (bronze), all tied on match points. In the Women's it was China and Ukraine with gold and silver, with Georgia taking the clear bronze. All Round 11 matches at live.chessbase.com

10/3/2018 – The Dutch (1.d4 f5) is known as a very aggressive and unbalanced opening, resulting in the lowest percentage of draws among the most common replies to 1.d4 . The opening became popular during the 1951 World Championship match, where both players tried it successfully. Today, players known for spectacular attacking chess are using the opening as a dangerous, surprise weapon.

9/27/2018 – Firmly established over 2800: Shakhriyar Mamedyarov is Number 3 in the world after a masterful victory in Biel. Read about the Sinquefield Cup and Dortmund too, plus opening training and Simon Williams' video on the Sicilian Wing Gambit.

9/24/2018 – For White, the Exchange Variation (1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.Bd3) is a simple and easy to answer to the Caro-Kann. It is probably something you can use very effectively in your next tournament, especially if you have been given instructions by a true expert, and have practised the strategies he advocates against a human-like chess engine that matches the strength of your future opponents. That's precisely what you'll find here. Give it a try and see what it does for your understanding of this popular opening.

9/15/2018 – (All stories on the World Junior) Live games and commentary from the 2018 World Junior Chess Championship in Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey, September 5th-15th with a rest day on September 9th. Live video commentary by IM Can Arduman, IM Ekaterina Atalik and FM Tarik Selbes.

9/14/2018 – Another spectacular chess event is ongoing at the Saint Louis Chess Club. Ten world-class players, including Garry Kasparov, compete in rapid and blitz matches in Chess960. Live video and commentary from 20:00 CEST (19:00 UT). | Graphic: Standings after Day 3 / Saint Louis Chess Club

9/13/2018 – With the ChessBase account you can train and improve, and follow live events. It's web-based, for use with a tablet, smartphone, iPad or PC. It's easy — here's a short manual (PDF) There's much more on our ChessBase download page.

9/12/2018 – Bobby Fischer was a devoted Sicilian player. But the American chess genius and 11th World Champion was also a devoted 1.e4 (“Best by test” as he said) player, and his results against the Sicilian are remarkable. In almost all variations he came up with new ideas and developed systems of his own — such as 6.Bc4 (one of his pet moves) against the Najdorf, and the Rauzer. Fischer liked to play aggressive but basically sound lines against the Sicilian and many of his variations are still very much alive and a good choice for players of all levels.

9/8/2018 – Beatriz Marinello is a Vice President of FIDE, the head of the FIDE Social Action Commission and a Woman International Master. Born in Chile, she moved to the United States in 1990 and started working in chess projects until becoming President of the U.S. Chess Federation. In an interview with the Spanish magazine "Ajedrez Terapéutico", she talks about chess in education, women's chess, Phiona Mutesi and shares some Bobby Fischer stories. | Photo: Dora Martínez / Ajedrez Social y Terapéutico

9/7/2018 – (Continued from Part 2) Wrapping up our tour of the extensive and high-quality Sinquefield Cup coverage on the Saint Louis Chess Club YouTube Channel, we've pulled out a number of the interviews and bonus material you may have missed. Have a look and keep it in mind for future reference. There are game annotations from GM Daniel Fernandez too!