7/14/2025 – With an opening press conference at Wynn Las Vegas, Freestyle Chess has officially launched its first-ever U.S. event: a full week of chess, celebrity, and competition. The week began with the Chesstival on July 13, and will continue with the $750,000 Freestyle Chess Grand Slam from July 16 to 20. | Photo: freestyle_chess and wwwchesscom
new: Fritz 20
Your personal chess trainer. Your toughest opponent. Your strongest ally. FRITZ 20 is more than just a chess engine – it is a training revolution for ambitious players and professionals. Whether you are taking your first steps into the world of serious chess training, or already playing at tournament level, FRITZ 20 will help you train more efficiently, intelligently and individually than ever before.
YOUR PERSONAL CHESS COACH - Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before. FRITZ is more than just a chess engine – it’s a training revolution! Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.
YOUR EASY ACCESS TO OPENING THEORY: Whether you want to build up a reliable and powerful opening repertoire or find new opening ideas for your existing repertoire, the Opening Encyclopaedia covers the entire opening theory on one product.
€169.90
Freestyle Chess Press Release, Las Vegas, NV – July 13, 2025
Jan Henric Buettner opens Grand Slam event and Chesstival at Wynn
The Chesstival brings together NBA stars such as Derrick Rose, Rajon Rondo, and TonySnell, teaming up with the world’s chess elite for a light-hearted but competitive pro-am chess showdown. Chesstival also features the NBA Blitz Chess Championship that carries a $50,000 charity prize fund.
Live-Stream of the Chesstival
Given Rose’s investment in Freestyle Chess, linking his Chesstival concept to the Freestyle tour was a logical step. In the Wynn, the NBA stars will play in the same setup that later hosts the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, giving them an opportunity to experience a chess super-tournament environment firsthand.
Speaking in the Lafite Ballroom, Freestyle co-founder Jan Henric Buettner welcomed media and guests ahead of a week that expands the global Freestyle Chess tour into uncharted territory. "We have the top eight U.S. players facing off against the top from the rest of the world – a setup that makes the Las Vegas Grand Slam especially exciting,” said Buettner.
The Las Vegas Grand Slam marks a number of firsts for Freestyle Chess: the first Grand Slam on U.S. soil, the first with 16 players, among them the first woman to play a Grand Slam, the first live audience seated near the stage, and the first with live commentary available through silent headsets. The production is designed to bring fans closer than ever – with immersive visuals and a format built for drama.
New format, more pressure
The Las Vegas tournament introduces a 16-player format with a double elimination structure. After an initial group stage with rapid time control (10 minutes plus 10 seconds per move), the players enter a championship or placement bracket depending on their results. Players eliminated from the top bracket cannot return to the final – at most, they can finish in third place. All knockout rounds will be played with a 30+30 classical time control, counting toward the official Freestyle rating.
The format guarantees that every match has consequences – win and move forward, lose twice and you’re out. It’s a structure that intensifies the competition and rewards consistency under pressure.
After three events, world number one and Freestyle Chess co-founder Magnus Carlsen leads the Freestyle Grand Slam pack with 65 points, followed by Fabiano Caruana (39) and VincentKeymer (37). These two as well as Hikaru Nakamura (28) in fourth place will need strong results in Las Vegas to stay within striking distance. Every match counts – for placement, for Elo, and for qualification to the final in Cape Town.
In parallel, the Freestyle Elo rating continues to evolve. Las Vegas is the first event to use the faster 30+30 classical control, with all 30+30 games contributing to the players’ ratings. Will Carlsen set a new record after being the first to break the 2900 barrier?
Side events, crossover energy and new opportunities
Past Grand Slams have already hosted friendly poker games with players, organizers, and staff after the chess battles. In Las Vegas – the city synonymous with poker and high-stakes drama – poker tournaments will be a regular part of the week’s side program. They deepen the vibrant crossover between chess, entertainment, and fierce competition that Freestyle is aiming to build.
The Las Vegas event also serves as a launchpad for Freestyle Chess’s next phase of growth. It brings together partners and stakeholders interested in shaping the future of the sport.
YOUR PERSONAL CHESS COACH - Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.
YOUR PERSONAL CHESS COACH - Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.
In this powerful new course, endgame expert Karsten Müller teams up with rising star Leon Mendonca to deliver what truly matters: 10 essential rules that every player must know.
In this video course experts examine the games of Bent Larsen. Let them show you which openings Larsen chose, where his strength in middlegames were, how he outplayed his opponents in the endgame & you’ll get a glimpse of his tactical abilities!
From the 2026 Candidates Tournament, featuring a video review by Dorian Rogozenco, to Jan Werle’s opening video on the French Tarrasch Defence, and Oliver Reeh’s tactical column ‘Top Grandmasters at Work’. Analyses by Giri, So, Wei Yi and many others.
You will learn how Black's dynamic piece activity and structural counterplay more than compensate for White's extra tempo in the colour-reversed setups.
In this course, you’ll learn how to take the initiative against the London and prevent White from comfortably playing their usual system by playing 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 Nh5.
€9.90
We use cookies and comparable technologies to provide certain functions, to improve the user experience and to offer interest-oriented content. Depending on their intended use, analysis cookies and marketing cookies may be used in addition to technically required cookies. Here you can make detailed settings or revoke your consent (if necessary partially) with effect for the future. Further information can be found in our data protection declaration.
Pop-up for detailed settings
We use cookies and comparable technologies to provide certain functions, to improve the user experience and to offer interest-oriented content. Depending on their intended use, cookies may be used in addition to technically required cookies, analysis cookies and marketing cookies. You can decide which cookies to use by selecting the appropriate options below. Please note that your selection may affect the functionality of the service. Further information can be found in our privacy policy.
Technically required cookies
Technically required cookies: so that you can navigate and use the basic functions and store preferences.
Analysis Cookies
To help us determine how visitors interact with our website to improve the user experience.
Marketing-Cookies
To help us offer and evaluate relevant content and interesting and appropriate advertisement.
