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 – Nach Weissenhaus und Paris ist das Wynn in Las Vegas die dritte Station der Freestyle Grand Slam Tour. Am 13. Juli spielen ehemalige NBA-Spieler im einem K.o.-Schachturnier gegeneinander. Vom 16. bis 20. Juli wird das Freestyle-Turnier der Schachprofis gespielt. Wer vor Ort dabei sein möchte, kann jetzt schon Tickets ab 90 US-Dollar.

6/4/2025 – The conversation with Matthias Wüllenweber about Fritz 20 highlights the numerous innovations in the new version: A key focus is on the new opponent characters, including legends like Fischer, Lasker, Capablanca, and Karpov. Another highlight is the AI-powered voice commentary, featuring over 170 chess-related themes that provide both entertainment and educational value—available in multiple languages if desired. In addition, the opening repertoires of real chess legends like Fischer have been integrated, and the new "Bullet Training" mode offers practical time-management training against realistically acting opponents. The newly improved engine is also a major upgrade and presents an independent analysis alternative to Stockfish.

6/4/2025 – Tuesday's eighth round at the Norway Chess tournament saw setbacks for Fabiano Caruana and Gukesh Dommaraju, who both lost their classical games to Arjun Erigaisi and Hikaru Nakamura, respectively. Magnus Carlsen, meanwhile, was defeated by Wei Yi in Armageddon for a second time. Despite the loss, Caruana remains the sole leader with two rounds to go, holding a slim lead in a tightly contested event entering its final stretch in Stavanger. | Photo: Michal Walusza

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.

6/4/2025 – Eight days ago, on Saturday, 24 May, the funeral service for Grand Master Vlastimil Hort, who passed away on 12 May, took place in Eitorf. His wife, Brigitte; his son; his grandson; and his friends and relatives said goodbye to this kind-hearted man. One fan expressed his grief by posting a song on YouTube.

6/1/2025 – Herman Grooten is an International Master, a renowned trainer, and the author of several highly acclaimed books on chess training and strategy. In episode 232 of his "Understanding before Moving" show, Herman continues his exploration of brilliant moments from chess history. | Photo: Pascal Simon

6/1/2025 – When it comes to endgames, there's nobody better than Karsten Müller. Michael Kotyk, the young Hamburg chess trainer, knows this well. He's taken out his magnifying glass and dedicated himself to Müller's latest work: His endgame courses are ChessBase classics. The most recent edition also employs the interactive options that have become indispensable in video courses. The new edition of the Endgame Academy kicks off with Checkmate & Pawn Endgames.

6/1/2025 – Humpy Koneru is now the sole leader of the Norway Chess Women tournament after defeating Lei Tingjie in Armageddon following a drawn classical game. Anna Muzychuk was held to a draw in both games by Ju Wenjun, allowing the women's world champion to claim 1½ point, as she stands in sole third place. In the day's only classical win, Vaishali Rameshbabu beat Sara Khadem with black to climb to fourth place in the standings. | Photo: Michal Walusza

6/1/2025 – Magnus Carlsen holds a 1½-point lead at the top of the Norway Chess standings after defeating Fabiano Caruana in Armageddon following a drawn classical game. All three encounters in round five required tiebreaks, with Arjun Erigaisi and Wei Yi also securing 1½ points each after winning their respective sudden-death games against Hikaru Nakamura and Gukesh Dommaraju. Wei's result marked his third straight Armageddon victory. | Photo: Michal Walusza

6/1/2025 – We've compiled some additional tips for our latest tutorial. These allow you, for example, to quickly open endgame positions from Karsten Müller's articles in ChessBase, and compare structures you're interested in with positions from the Mega Database. Check out the example and use these practical features for your training!

5/31/2025 – The fifth Hungarian Parachess Championship, held from 22–25 May, brought together visually impaired, hearing impaired, physically disabled players and organ transplant recipients in a unique national event. Organised by the Hungarian Chess Federation, FODISZ and the Hungarian Paralympic Committee, the tournament celebrated inclusion and sporting spirit. FM Zoltán Zambó won overall gold, with strong performances across categories and a record 24 participants, highlighting growing support for parachess in Hungary.