Three matches per weekend

The new Chess Bundesliga season begins on Friday at 4 p.m. The teams will not have much time to settle in, however. Three rounds are scheduled within just three days - a consequence of the new calendar, which reduces the previous seven Bundesliga weekends to five dates, each featuring three match days. The season begins on 9 October and ends from 2 to 4 April 2027 with the central final round in Neuwied.

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The convincing champions of the 2026/27 season: SC Viernheim | Photo: Nils Rohde

From a sporting perspective, the picture remains familiar: SC Viernheim enter the season as defending champions, while OSG Baden-Baden are once again the strongest team on paper. With an average Elo of 2718.5, according to our statistics, Baden-Baden are ahead of Viernheim, who come in at 2692.6. The gap alone, however, says little about how the season will unfold. Last year already showed that it is not only nominal strength that matters, but above all which players are actually sitting at the boards. This is precisely where Baden-Baden will be hoping for greater consistency this time.

Comprehensive live commentary at last

In recent years, there have rightly been calls for live commentary befitting one of the "strongest leagues in the world". That is exactly what will be introduced for the season beginning on Friday. SC Viernheim have already regularly offered live commentary with GM Ilja Zaragatski and Angelika Valkova, although this focused mainly on their own club. That coverage will continue. Other clubs, such as St. Pauli and Bayern Munich, have also occasionally provided similar accompanying coverage. FC Bayern will again offer commentary on the games from Munich this coming weekend, with GM Klaus Bischoff at the microphone (MSA Zugzwang are the hosts).

The most comprehensive and significant new offering, however, comes from the German Chess Federation: Schachdeutschlandtv will provide extensive coverage of the full match days on YouTube and Twitch. WGM Josefine Safarli and WCM Katharina Reinecke will launch the coverage this weekend.

Viernheim enter the fray as defending champions

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The champions open against promoted side SV Erkenschwick 1923, whom Viernheim recently defeated in the cup final. On paper, the roles are clearly defined. Viernheim have an exceptionally strong lineup and have largely kept their leading players in the roster. Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Jorden van Foreest and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov head a team aiming to defend their title. Aydin Suleymanli has been added to the squad.

Parham Maghsoodloo (left) played throughout last season on board three and scored a strong 4½/7 - pictured here against Ihor Samunenkov, whose club Wolfhagen withdrew after finishing third in their debut season | Photo: Stefan Liebig¿

After the opening match against Erkenschwick, another task awaits on Saturday: SC Heimbach-Weis-Neuwied. On Sunday, Viernheim face Werder Bremen. The 12-year-old Argentine prodigy Faustino Oro is the second-youngest grandmaster in chess history and, if he plays, will attract additional attention in Bremen.

Baden-Baden hopefully field their stars

Baden-Baden also begin against a traditional club, facing SG Solingen on Friday. A day later they meet newly promoted SC Remagen Sinzig, before completing the weekend on Sunday against SV Deggendorf.

Bundesliga fans would be delighted to see many games featuring this pair: Viswanathan Anand and Vincent Keymer | Photo: Stefan Liebig

Baden-Baden have made targeted changes to their squad compared with last season. Anish Giri, Alireza Firouzja and Levon Aronian are no longer in the lineup. In their place, among others, German stars Matthias Bluebaum and Dimitrij Kollars have joined the team, as well as Shamsiddin Vokhidov and Maxime Lagarde. Fabiano Caruana, Javokhir Sindarov, Vincent Keymer, Viswanathan Anand and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave remain in the squad. The decisive question, however, will be how regularly these players can actually be fielded.

St. Pauli and Bayern in the chasing pack

The opening weekend is particularly interesting with regard to the battles featuring FC Bayern Munich, Hamburger SK, FC St. Pauli and MSA Zugzwang. Bayern face Hamburger SK on Friday, followed by MSA Zugzwang on Saturday and St. Pauli on Sunday. Hamburger SK, meanwhile, play St. Pauli on Saturday and Zugzwang on Sunday.

St. Pauli once again enter the season with a prominent name: Magnus Carlsen leads the squad, with another world-class player, Richard Rapport, behind him. Whether Carlsen will actually be available remains uncertain, as in previous years. Even so, the club have significantly improved their average Elo and are nominally part of the chasing group behind Baden-Baden and Viernheim.

Bayern have also strengthened their squad. Nodirbek Yakubboev joins the team and is expected to play on board two behind Vladimir Fedoseev. This puts Munich among the teams aiming to establish themselves in the fight for the leading places.

Promoted teams face different test

While the teams at the top are already talking about championship points, the promoted sides face a different kind of early test. Alongside Erkenschwick, Bad Mergentheim and Remagen Sinzig are new or returning to the Bundesliga. Vasyl Ivanchuk is listed on board one for Remagen Sinzig. The living and still very active chess legend has been associated with the club for many years.

Bad Mergentheim begin against Düsseldorfer SK, play SF Berlin on Saturday and face Kirchweyhe on Sunday. Remagen Sinzig first meet Deggendorf, then Baden-Baden and finally Solingen. The promoted squad therefore faces an extremely difficult assignment as early as the second match day.

Erkenschwick likewise have little chance to catch their breath after opening against Viernheim: they face Werder Bremen on Saturday before meeting Heimbach-Weis-Neuwied on Sunday.

Three days, nine matches per playing group

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In this insightful video course, Grandmaster David Navara shares practical advice on when to calculate deeply in a position — and just as importantly, when not to.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Invisible moves

The new schedule also changes the rhythm of the season. The opening three rounds form a compact block in which early gaps in the table could develop quickly. At the same time, no long-term conclusions should be drawn from a single defeat. Once again this season, the league is characterised by a clear gap between the two leading teams, a strong chasing group and a broad midfield.

The new format is intended above all to make scheduling easier and improve the availability of top players. Five weekends instead of seven reduce travel and organisational demands and are intended to limit clashes with international tournaments. The basic principle remains unchanged: 16 teams compete over 8 boards for match points, with the final totals deciding the championship and relegation.

Links

• Official website
• Full technical info (rosters, schedules, pairings) by the German Chess Federation