7/9/2025 – "Chess problems demand from the composer the same virtues that characterize all worthwhile art: originality, invention, conciseness, harmony, complexity and splendid insincerity," wrote Vladimir Nabokov. Problem expert Werner Keym illustrates this in a new book which he makes available, as an eBook, to everyone, free of charge. Here are some excerpts to give you a taste.

7/1/2025 – Last week we gave you four pawn endings to solve – on the diagrams, without engine support. Like the one on our thumbnail. White has six legal moves, all with his king. What should you play? Did you find the astonishing and subtle 1.Kf5!, the only move that ensures the win. Today we bring you the solutions to all four endgames, lucidly explained in YouTube Shorts by Volclus. Watch, listen and learn.

6/30/2025 – In 1986 the award-winning musical Chess, written by lyricist Tim Rice, with the music composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus (both formerly of ABBA), premiered in London's West End. This autumn, we are told, it is going to revived on Broadway, with a new updated book. Ready for a truly great musical treat? Then take an hour and a half to watch videos of a previous production. You will not regret it.

6/27/2025 – They are absolutely vital. Gukesh won the World Championship with one – or we could say Ding Liren lost his title because he misplayed it. So can you understand and play pawn endings proficiently? Take a look at this position: White has six legal moves, all with his king. But only one of them ensures the win. Which one? We have four instructive and entertaining positions that will test your skills. And hopefully leave you a better, more effective player.

6/25/2025 – He is one of the best-known commentators for international chess events. Maurice Ashley has covered high-profile events such as the Kasparov vs. Nigel Short World Championship (1993), Kasparov vs. Deep Blue matches (1996 and 1997), and Kasparov vs. X3D Fritz (2003). He has also commentated for the Grand Chess Tour, Sinquefield Cups, and US Chess Championships. Turns out he has other strengths. Read on to find out.

6/15/2025 – Do you remember the pioneering chess film "Searching for Bobby Fischer"? It told the story of a seven-year-old US chess prodigy – with stars like Joe Mantegna, Ben Kingsley and Laurence Fishburne playing his father and trainers. Josh Waitzkin retired from active chess at 23, moved to Costa Rica and became an expert in the art of learning. Recently, he became a consultant of the Boston Celtics basketball team.

6/12/2025 – In our previous article on historical chess statistics we showed you the number of rated players there were in 1993, their ages, ratings, and where they came from. Today we compare them with the current FIDE statistics, showing how things have developed in the three decades that have passed. Our report also contains a little puzzle for you to mull over – why does the chess superpower China have so few rated players?

6/10/2025 – The ChessBase Premium Account is a powerful all-in-one chess improvement tool that provides extensive online resources, training, playing opportunities, and cloud services to help players of all levels enhance their game effectively. And the service runs on anything: Windows, Macs, notebooks, tablets, your mobile phone. Watch this video by Sagar Shah explaining the services you get and how to best use it. And best of all: it will only cost you €4.99 per month!

6/5/2025 – What was the chess world like, 32 years ago? How many players were there, how strong were they, how many were grandmasters? In 1993 the newly founded Professional Chess Association, seeking to win Intel as its main sponsor, commissioned the collection of statistics. Today we look at the results, and ask you to comment on the numbers you see. The follow-up article will compare them with those of the current chess world.

6/4/2025 – Last year FIDE celebrated its 100th anniversary. The book "100 Years of FIDE" is an illustrated history of the World Chess Federation. From it we excerpt passages, with kind permission, this time from the first World Championships in the post-war era – after the sudden death of World Champion Alexander Alekhine. It is a great chance to brush up your knowledge of chess history.

5/12/2025 – Legendary American Grandmaster Alex Yermolinsky, "Yermo", remains hospitalized in Tekirdag, Turkey after undergoing a four-way heart bypass. He was being crushed by medical bills and needed help. That was given by a GoFundMe appeal started just over a week ago. The goal of the required $64,000 has almost been met. You can help push it over the finish line.

5/12/2025 – Last year FIDE celebrated its 100th anniversary. The book "100 Years of FIDE" is an illustrated history of the World Chess Federation. From it we excerpt passages to retrace the final non-FIDE world championship (Alekhine-Boguljubow) and the Chess Olympiads from 1924 to 1940. This is a great chance to brush up your knowledge of chess history.

5/6/2025 – Legendary American Grandmaster Alex Yermolinsky, "Yermo", remains hospitalized in Tekirdag, Turkey after undergoing a four-way heart bypass. Yermolinsky is a two-time United States Champion, member of four U.S. Chess Olympiad teams, four American World Senior teams and an inductee to the Chess Hall of Fame. He is now is being crushed by medical bills. You can help.

5/5/2025 – "The BBC has posted a 1972 interview with Fischer by James Burke on YouTube," our friend Yasser Seirawan told us. BBC Two had was broadcast this video, which is 35 minutes long, on 2 July, 1972, nine days before the epic match began. "Personally, I thought that it is fantastic, vintage stuff. You see the Fischer that I met in 1992. Engaging, funny, self-assured. But also aware of his own shortcomings." It is really something you don't want to miss.

4/25/2025 – Looking for a very nice gift for a dear friend? Someone special who really love chess. Then the Rolls-Royce set is definitely something you should consider. It is magnificently designed, elegant as they come, and certainly something that will billionaires like yourself to play a game. Take a look.

4/23/2025 – Everyone knows FIDE, which in July last year celebrated its 100th anniversary. But how did the organisation come about? The book "100 Years of FIDE" is an illustrated history of the World Chess Federation. From it we excerpt passages to retrace the foundation of FIDE and its progress in the first half of the last century.

4/22/2025 – I have told the story often: in an interview in 2020 I said that in five years I expected at least two of the top ten players in the world would be Indian. My prediction was met with deep scepticism. It was clearly the unrealistic optimism of a friend and admirer of young Indian talents. It is true I was wrong. In five years since the prediction three have risen into the top ten bracket, and a fourth is on his way into it.

4/1/2025 – For decades we rigorously celebrated April Fool's day. But our pranks became progressively more difficult over the years. If we were able to construct a fake story, one that was genuinely funny, our friends at Google made it possible to check it in seconds. So we abandoned the tradition. Today, however, we present you with hoaxes and counterfeits in the history of chess. We had expert assistance in doing so.