Berlin to Host Armageddon Championship Series 2023

Press release

Berlin to Host Armageddon Championship Series 2023

The event is expected to be one of the most televised chess events in the world 

Berlin, Germany — 16 February 2023 — The Armageddon Championship Series 2023, a revolutionary chess format developed specifically for television by World Chess plc, will take place in Berlin, Germany from March to September 2023, filmed in a bespoke pavilion located on Unter Den Linden. The series begins with the Americas’ Championship Series from March 6 - 12, followed by the Asia and Oceania, Women’s Week, and Europe and Africa series, ending with the exhilarating series Grand Finale streamed on international television between September 14 - 20. 

World Chess, the company famous for chess innovation, developed the Armageddon Championship Series to become the Formula 1 of chess — a season of high-intensity ultra-fast chess tournaments, groundbreaking broadcast, and international TV distribution, featuring the likes of Wesley So (USA), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), Sam Shankland (USA), Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland), Vidit Gugrathi (India), Richard Rapport (Romania), Vincent Keymer (Germany), Gukesh D (India), and other world-famous chess players. These participants will battle under immense time pressure for a total prize fund of the Series of €460 000, with a heartbeat and for the first time ever, calorie-burned data points shown on screen alongside the moves and the feed live from the studio. 

The Armageddon Championship Series 2023 starts on March 6 and is expected to be one of the most thrilling and widely-watched chess series of the year. It will be broadcast live and feature highlights on over 30 online and TV platforms globally, including CNBC, Channel 4, beIN, and Fox Australia, among others. Over 220 million households are anticipated to watch the show.

Ilya Merenzon, CEO of World Chess, commented: "Armageddon is the Formula 1 of intellectual sports, and with millions of people watching chess, innovation like the Armageddon tournament marks chess becoming a truly global mass spectator sport." 

"From the comfort of their own home, fans can get their hearts racing watching some of the greatest chess players of all time play a rapid-fire game, before refueling and going again. All whilst chess increasingly becomes a staple of the sports broadcasting ecosystem."

Dates: 

Armageddon Championship Series: Americas — March 6-12

Armageddon Championship Series: Asia & Oceania — April 3-9
Armageddon Championship Series: Women’s week — May 8 - 14
Armageddon Championship Series: Europe & Africa — June 12-18
Armageddon Championship Series: Grand Finale — September 14-20

Official website: https://chessarena.com/armageddon 
 

Armageddon Championship Series format: 

There are 32 chess players taking part in the Armageddon Championship Series. In each event, eight players will compete in a seven-day double-elimination tournament. Matches consisting of two quick blitz games (3 minutes plus a 2-second move increment) and, if necessary, an Armageddon (5 minutes for White, 4 minutes for Black) will take place each day. Each game is expected to last about ten minutes. The top two players of each event secure two places in the Grand Finale.