Central America on the world chess map
From 11 to 16 August 2026, San José will welcome the best young minds of a continent as Costa Rica hosts the American Continental Stage of the FIDE-ISCF World Schools Team Championship 2026 (WSTC). Held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Cariari, the championship gathers top school teams from across the Americas: from Mexico to Peru, from Jamaica to Barbados - each competing for a place in the Grand Final against the champions of the other continental stages.
It is a historic milestone. Never before has this stage of the World Schools Team Championship been held in Costa Rica or Central America, and its arrival turns San José into a meeting point for youth, education and sport at the highest level.
Organised by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and the International Schools Chess Federation (ISCF), together with the Costa Rican Chess Federation and the Confederation of Chess for the Americas (CCA), the event takes place within the framework of the Year of Chess in Education 2026, a joint FIDE-ISCF initiative, supported by Freedom Holding Corp., that brings chess into classrooms and national education systems around the world.
Chess that lasts beyond the final move
The FIDE ISCF World Schools Team Championship - American Continental Stage brings together the strongest school teams from across the Americas. But the championship is also a meeting point for educators, policymakers, federations and families who share a common belief: chess has an important role to play in shaping how children learn.
Held during the Year of Chess in Education 2026, the event reflects a growing global movement. Around the world, countries are integrating chess into education to strengthen critical thinking, decision-making, resilience and creativity. The championship creates an opportunity not only to compete, but also to exchange experience, strengthen partnerships and help successful ideas reach more schools and more children.
Smart Moves Americas: Governments that think ahead
This compact course is designed specifically for practical play. Instead of overwhelming you with endless theory, it focuses on the critical lines, typical plans, and recurring tactical ideas.
Looking for an opening that gets your opponents thinking on move one? Grandmaster Andy Woodward has relied on 1.b3 for years in blitz and bullet, using it to defeat strong masters and grandmasters who underestimated its hidden venom. While many players dismiss the opening as harmless, they often find themselves caught in unfamiliar positions, tactical traps, and uncomfortable middlegames. This compact course is designed specifically for practical play. Instead of overwhelming you with endless theory, it focuses on the critical lines, typical plans, and recurring tactical ideas that matter most when the clock is ticking.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: King's Indian Setup
A central part of the championship week is Smart Moves Americas: Governments That Think Ahead, the ministerial conference organised by the International School Chess Federation and the Confederation of Chess for the Americas.
Held on 12 August at the Cariari Country Club as a flagship event of the Year of Chess in Education, officially declared by FIDE and ISCF, the conference will bring together ministers, education authorities, curriculum leaders, teacher-training specialists, government representatives and international partners to exchange proven practices, strengthen regional partnerships and support the sustainable expansion of Chess in Education across the Americas.
The conference focuses on practical experience rather than theory. Participants will explore national case studies, teacher development, curriculum integration, and approaches that have already demonstrated results in different education systems.
Delegations are expected from across the region, including representatives from Costa Rica, Barbados, El Salvador, Panama, United States, the Dominican Republic and other countries of the Americas, creating an unprecedented regional platform for policy dialogue and professional exchange.
The conference program includes:
- Registration & Networking Coffee
- Opening Ceremony
- From Vision to National Action: a ministerial panel exploring national leadership, policy development and successful government initiatives
- Memorandum Signing Ceremony: reinforcing regional cooperation and long-term collaboration in Chess in Education
- Launch of the Beacons League School Certification Program: a joint initiative introducing the first certification framework for Costa Rican schools implementing Chess in Education
- Chess School Awards: recognising schools demonstrating outstanding leadership and innovation in Chess in Education
- Networking Lunch
- Playing the Long Game: Building Sustainable Chess in Education: exploring the foundations of long-term success in Chess in Education, from policy and partnerships to funding, teacher capacity, localisation and evidence, with perspectives from countries at different stages of implementation.
- Networking Coffee
- One Board, Millions of Classrooms: bringing together education experts and curriculum specialists to explore teaching methodologies, interdisciplinary learning, classroom practices and innovative ways to embed chess across the curriculum.
Smart Moves Americas is designed to connect those who shape education policy with those who shape classroom practice. By bringing together decision-makers and education practitioners in the same room, the conference creates a shared space where successful experiences can be exchanged, adapted and transformed into long-term regional cooperation.
Learning beyond competition
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Throughout the championship, participants will have access to a comprehensive educational program designed for students, teachers, parents, coaches and federation officials.
The week includes:
- Smart Moves: Girls Who Lead, developed in partnership with the Confederation of Chess for America, promoting the participation and empowerment of girls and women in chess through a girls' masterclass and blitz tournament.
- Chess in Subject, demonstrating practical ways to integrate chess into classroom teaching across different subjects.
- ISCF Master Class Series - Raising Champions: From Talent to Title, exploring long-term player development and the role of families, coaches and schools.
- Simul with a Twist, an interactive simultaneous exhibition where spectators become part of the game through collective decision-making.
- Kahoot Chess Quiz, bringing together learning and competition in an engaging format.
- Sustainability and community initiatives, including environmental activities and collaborative sessions developed with international partners.
Every activity has been designed with the same objective: helping participants leave with new knowledge, new ideas and new connections that continue long after the championship has ended.
A stage for the continent
The championship will be attended by senior officials and distinguished guests from across the Americas, including José Antonio Carrillo Pujol, President of FIDE Americas (CCA); Hon. Chad J. Blackman, M.P., Minister of Educational Transformation of Barbados; Dalila Beatriz Beltrán de Menjívar, National Director of School Coexistence at MINEDUCYT, El Salvador; and Andrea Marshall-Harris, International Director of the Barbados Chess Federation. They will be joined by educators and speakers such as Robert McLellan (National Scholastic Chess Foundation, USA) and WFM Amelia Hernández (USA/Venezuela).
For Costa Rica, the tournament is more than a sporting occasion. It is an opportunity to showcase the country's commitment to youth, education, and international cooperation - and to welcome the continent to a week where every young player, whatever the result, leaves with something that lasts.
"This isn't a week where kids just show up, play, and leave", said the ISCF team. "The conference, the masterclasses and the side events are there so that everyone - students, teachers and governments - walks away with something. A skill, a perspective, a connection to a place they'd never been before".
The championship is supported by Freedom Holding Corp., the international financial and investment group, whose partnership has been instrumental in bringing the full scope of the programme to life.
About ISCF
The International School Chess Federation (ISCF) is dedicated to promoting chess in schools worldwide, using the game as a tool for education, personal development, and youth empowerment. ISCF organizes international school chess championships and educational programmes across multiple continents in partnership with national federations and educational institutions.
Official website: https://ischoolchess.com/
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!
Bent Larsen (1935–2010) was the greatest chess player in Danish history, and for a time, the second-strongest player in the Western world behind Bobby Fischer. Between 1954 and 1971, he won the Danish Championship six times, and achieved numerous international tournament victories throughout his career.
Free video sample: Introduction to Bent Larsen by Peter Heine Nielsen
Free video sample: Introduction to the Opening Section
