6/22/2018 – If Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik could learn from the great Patriarch of chess Mikhail Botvinnik, we are sure you can also learn a great deal from this great master. Hence, ChessBase has launched its tenth DVD in the Master Class series in which capable tutors like GMsYannick Pelletier, Mihail Marin, Karsten Mueller and IM Oliver Reeh dissect the play of the fifth World Champion. In this article IM SAGAR SHAH explains how studying the classics helped him to become a stronger chess player. He shows you one of his favourite games of Botvinnik and how he applied what he learnt in his own game at the under-19 nationals back in 2007!

6/12/2018 – Tactics are fun and solving tactics puzzles improves your chess. The search mask of ChessBase and Fritz allows you to quickly find games with sacrifices. And that's only one of the many options for this tool! | Drawing: ChessBase

6/8/2018 – The recent article by Qiyu Zhou on pattern recognition was very well received — by our readers and in academic circles. At the end of the article, Frederic Friedel asked readers if anyone could locate footage from a science documentary he had produced 38 years ago, in which similar experiments were conducted. Unfortunately nobody apparently could, and so this promised follow-up article will have to make do with vivid descriptions and black and white photos. | Pictured: A teenage Nigel Short, a subject of Friedel's chess experiments

5/8/2018 – Alexander Hamilton was one of the Founding Fathers of the USA and the first Secretary of the Treasury. To honour his memory the Manhattan Institute gives the Alexander Hamilton Award to public figures that are seen to incorporate the spirit of this legendary figure. 2018, Stanley Druckenmiller, Co-Founder of the Kasparov Chess Foundation, received the prestigious award. The Kasparov Chess Foundation congratulates. | (Photo: Kasparov Chess Foundation

4/13/2018 – The 13th of April is "Kasparov-day". Today, 55 years ago, arguably the best player in chess history was born and since then has shaped the history of chess like no other player — not only on the board! Andre Schulz briefly traces Kasparov's history from his first international moves, through the peak of his career in 1999, his life in politics (both in and out of the chess world) and on to his recent advocacy work. | Photo: Kasparov.com

3/30/2018 – Fabiano Caruana’s victory at the Candidates not only promises an exciting match, but will also be the first title match by a player born in the USA in 46 years, since Bobby Fischer’s famous bout against Boris Spassky in 1972. However, theirs were hardly the only ones by US players. The very first was by Frank Marshall in 1907 against none other than Emanuel Lasker. Here is a look at that chess legend and his title match with annotations by Garry Kasparov! | Photo: Chicago History Museum

3/8/2018 – Gisbert Jacoby was a chess aficionado and multiple Hamburg champion. As a national coach of the Hamburg Chess Federation, he later promoted many Hamburg talents. From 1988 to 1999, Jacoby was a Managing Director of ChessBase and set the course for the development of the young company. He was friendly with chess luminaries such as Garry Kasparov and Judit Polgar. Last Thursday he died in Hamburg.

2/28/2018 – Two weeks ago there was a World Championship — in Chess960, a variant that symmetrically shuffles the position of the pieces behind the row of pawns. The game has gained some popularity since it eliminates the staggering amount of preparation that is required in regular chess. But Chess960 has a few problems that probably prevent it from really taking off. We discuss some possible solutions to these problems.

1/24/2018 – Kasparov has been making the media rounds as he does, but lately he's been fielding questions on chess rather than the subjects that are more often in his sights: Russia, politics, and AI. He's recently been featured in a serious conversation with conservative commentator Bill Kristol, a not-so-serious Q&A session with Twitter users published by Wired Magazine, and a wonderful mini-history lesson for The New Yorker magazine. | Photo: WIRED YouTube

1/12/2018 – Today, Friday, January 12, is the official start of the Tata Steel Chess tournament in Wijk aan Zee. Tomorrow, Saturday, January 13th at 13:30 CET, the first round begins. The tournament in Wijk aan Zee is the first elite tournament of the year and always a great celebration of chess. It is also a tournament with a long tradition – this year it celebrates its 80th birthday. The tournament has written chess history and continues to do so today, which makes it tempting to look at some numbers. | Photo: TataSteelChess.com

1/11/2018 – In the fourth and final part of the "Exercises in Style" readers were asked to identify games by Garry Kasparov, Vladimir Kramnik, Vishy Anand, and Magnus Carlsen. Not an easy task because three of these World Champions are still active and develop stylistically - only Kasparov withdrew from tournament chess. But though modern chess is becoming more and more universal each of these four World Champions has a unique style.

1/4/2018 – The Kasparov Chess Foundation (KCF) program to train young American talents, is expanding to include top prospects from around the world. Here's the info on how you can join. | Pictured: 2016 Under-10 World Champion Rochelle Wu | Photos: Derrick Bryant, kasparovchessfoundation.org