7/7/2025 – In the Endgame Magic Show #303, Karsten Müller shows a selection of endgames from the Uz Chess Cup. Guest tonight: Arne Kähler| You can watch the Endgame Magic Show on-demand with a ChessBase Premium account.

7/6/2025 – The FIDE Women's World Cup got underway at the Grand Bellagio Batumi Convention & Casino Hotel, where 86 players contested the first game of round one. While most favourites scored early wins, several matches remain finely balanced ahead of game two. A few surprises included resilient draws by lower-rated players against elite opposition. The day began with a ceremonial first move by FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich and Georgian Federation President Akaki Iashvili. | Photos: Anna Shtourman, Andrei Anosov / FIDE

7/6/2025 – The third event of the 2025 Grand Chess Tour is the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia, the second of three speed chess events, which is taking place on July 2-6 in Zagreb. The event starts with 9 rounds of rapid action, followed by 18 rounds of blitz. Included in the field are four out of the five highest-rated players in the world: Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu and Gukesh Dommaraju. | Follow the games live with expert commentary starting at 15.00 CEST (9.00 ET, 18.30 IST)

7/6/2025 – In his new Fast & Furious show, Robert Ris goes over an impressive victory by reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju, who punished Nodirbek Abdusattorov's risky pawn grabbing out of a Nimzo-Indian Defence. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.

7/6/2025 – The Women's World Cup was officially opened in Batumi with a gala evening of traditional Georgian music, dance and historical tributes to women's chess. Held at the Batumi Drama Theatre, the ceremony welcomed 107 players from 46 countries and featured speeches from FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich and Georgian Chess Federation President Akaki Iashvili. The event highlighted Georgia's deep-rooted chess heritage and set the tone for the competition ahead. | Photos: Polina Bovina

7/6/2025 – Magnus Carlsen took the lead at the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia tournament after scoring 7½/9 on the first day of blitz. Gukesh Dommaraju, who had led by three points after the rapid section, managed just 1½ points and fell to third place. Jan-Krzysztof Duda is now in second with 16 points, while Wesley So had the second-best blitz score of the day. The final nine rounds of blitz will be played on Sunday, as the action kicks off one hour earlier than usual. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

7/2/2025 – The strategic advantage of a good bishop vs. an inferior knight is determined by the pawn structure. Specifically, the bishop is superior to the knight when no pawns exist in the centre, but there are pawns on both flanks. International trainer GM Efstratios Grivas shows us how this kind of ending can best be handled, and does it with a game recently played in a top-level tournament.

7/1/2025 – The Elo ratings were introduced by the World Chess Federation as the official system to rank players on 1 July 1971. Robert "Bobby" Fischer led the rankings by a huge margin a year before his memorable World Championship match. The rating formula was developed by mathematician and chess enthusiast Arpad Elo.

7/1/2025 – Alexey Sarana triumphed in the 2025 Aktobe Open, held from June 22 to 30 in Kazakhstan, securing the title with 7 points. The tournament, named in memory of Vladimir Dvorkovich, saw a strong international field compete for a guaranteed prize fund of 78,000 USD. Sarana's consistent performance, including key victories in endgames, earned him the top spot, while five players tied for second place. | Foto: FIDE

7/1/2025 – Classic fortresses are an intriguing area in endgames. Even with a clear material imbalance, such as rook and pawn against queen and pawn, there are positions in which the defender can build an impregnable defence. The key is that you only need to know a few things and a few rules to build a fortress. This makes it surprisingly easy in the end. Dorian Rogozenco has devoted a trilogy to fortresses with rook and pawn against queen and pawn in ChessBase Magazine, and in the current issue #226, he concludes it with another attractive example. Take a look at this week's CBM free sample with an introductory video and five interactive videos where you can test your skills in a playful way!

7/1/2025 – In the Endgame Magic Show #302, Karsten Müller shows a selection of endgames from the Cairns Cup. | You can watch the Endgame Magic Show on-demand with a ChessBase Premium account.

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.