11/20/2016 – Game No. 7 Draw! (3.5-3.5) Annotated by Tiger Hillarp Perssson. A Chebanenko Slav that turned into a QGA after move five ended in a draw. Instead of grabbing space with 5.c5 or 5.Nf3 b5 6.c5 Karjakin prefered 5.Bd3 and Carlsen accepted the invitation to play ...5.dxc4. 18...Rc8, awarded with a ?!?!?! by Radjabov, was called a blunder immediately after the game by Carlsen. Karjakin admitted that he 'didn't know the theory too well.' Our coverage and commentary in the newsblog.

11/19/2016 – Game No. 6, draw No. 6 - Tiger Hillarp Persson, who has spent his entire life as a chess player trying to find asymmetry where he can find it, is our man to annotate this technical issue. Read about his preferences on books for dungeon situations and follow his notes until a state of zero entropy is unavoidable. Check out our newsblog with game annotations.

11/18/2016 – After one and half hours game six ended in a draw. Tiger Hillarp Persson on game No. 6 - Carlsen played a gambit with ...d5 in an 8.h3 Anti-Marshall and started a highly theoretical battle. The game soon headed towards an opposide coloured bishop endgame which was drawn in a completely equal position after 32 moves. Check out our Newsblog.

11/18/2016 – The last games of the match may have ended in draws, but if there ever was an example to point to with the words, “not all draws are created equal”, these are it. If Sergey Karjakin had shown extraordinary resourcefulness in saving his last two lost games, the question still remained unanswered: could he beat Magnus Carlsen? Unanswered until today when he lashed out after Carlsen mistakenly lowered his guard. This might have cost the champion big, but he dug very deep and managed to save it. Large illustrated report.

11/17/2016 – Game five ended in a draw bringing the match-score to 2.5-2.5. In an Italian game Sergey Karjakin equalized easily with Black and seized the initiative. But his activity soon came to a halt and Carlsen was in control again. Which he lost once more after the first time-control. But then it was Karjakin who missed good chances. More...

11/16/2016 – Game four was yet another battle of the wills. Once more Magnus Carlsen achieved what was generally deemed a ‘winning position’, that still needed to be won, and this time it was early in the opening. This also meant a longer period of suffering and more opportunities for a quicker kill, but Sergey Karjakin once more showed his vast resources and ability to weather the deadliest of storms, and drew after nearly seven hours of play. Large illustrated report with analysis by GM Dorian Rogozenco.

11/16/2016 – Game four: draw (2-2)! Karjakin did it again: he put his head into the lion's mouth and everybody expected the beast to snap. But it didn't happen. Sergey Houdini Karjakin managed to survive another stunt. The miracle of New York City continues. What's happening next? Will the Russian be diving with sharks? Is he going to try some roofing on the Empire State? Is he going to play 1...g5 against Carlsen's 1.e4 in game five on Thursday? Dorian Rogozenco explains The Great Escape...

11/15/2016 – The world championship has finally started. After a cautious first two games, with the two fighters circling each other, studying each other’s moves and essentially trying to bait one another into making a potentially fatal move, the end result was a sleepy start. Game three seemed to repeat this until the Russian suddenly cracked on move 31, and a decisive result was in the air. Illustrated report with analysis by GM Yasser Seirawan.

11/15/2016 – Game four ended in a draw! As in game three Carlsen reached a good, almost winning position but failed to win. After more than six hours of play the game was drawn. Another disappointment for Carlsen and another example of Karjakin's defensive skills. After four games the score is 2-2 and Karjakin still has to find a way to put Carlsen under pressure while Carlsen has to find a way to win his good positions. More...

11/14/2016 – Today, at 2 pm local time, Magnus Carlsen and Sergey Karjakin started game three of the World Championship Match in New York. Carlsen chose 1.e4 today, played a very well game and reached a very decent, maybe winning position after the first time control. A pawn down, Karjakin defended stubbornly and escaped with a draw. What a game! More...

11/13/2016 – Game two presented the next most interesting question: what did Karjakin have in store with White? While the game was not exactly thrilling, the lines of chess fans wanting to see the world champion in the flesh as he fought to retain his title were just huge. It was a Saturday and the fans came in droves, more often than not bringing their children in tow. Enjoy this report with many high-res images and annotations by GM Ruslan Ponomariov.

11/13/2016 – Game 2: Ruslan Ponomariov annotates the second game of the match Carlsen vs Karjakin: "18.de5 looks like a silent draw offer to me." - In his first game with White Karjakin opted for 1.e4 - a Ruy Lopez was on the board soon, and with 6.d3 Karjakin chose a quieter approach. Crowded house in New York. And among the commentating voices Garry Kimovich enters the scene. More...

11/12/2016 – The first day, the first game, what did the players have in store for us? Common sense said there would be cautious play by the player as they tried to see what their opponent had in store for them for the match. To the surprise of many, Carlsen’s weapon of choice was the Trompowsky, though not much came of it as they drew in 42 moves. Many are taking advantage of the match to promote chess activities such as the 100-year-old Marshall Chess Club.

11/12/2016 – Game 2 draw. Karjakin opened with 1e4, a Ruy Lopez. Before the game, Magnus Carlsen looked nervous. Both players started fast in the first 12 moves, a closed Ruy with 6d3. First exchange of pawns on move 18. Queenless middlegame after move 20. Updates coming up. More...

11/11/2016 – New York is without question the most famous city in the United States, and one of the most iconic in the world. Bringing the World Championship there once more after 21 years is thrilling and it will be the picture of a new era in more ways than one. The obvious one is that of the first match in history where both players are in their twenties, but this is also the era of the internet and even pay-per-view ideas with VR. Here is our onsite report with pictures galore.

11/11/2016 – Game 1: Draw! The Champ played the Trompovsky. Magnus Carlsen starts the match with White, FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov was not present at the opening gala in the Plaza Hotel at the Fifth Avenue but joined the show via Skype. More...

11/10/2016 – The Chess World Championship 2016 is about to begin. The whole world will turn their eyes to New York to see whether World Champion Magnus Carlsen retains his title against challenger Sergey Karjakin. Millions of people all over the world will follow the match via the internet. More than ever before.

11/10/2016 – Magnus Carlsen vs Sergey Karjakin - who will win the match in New York? Is there a clear favorite? What are strengths, what are weaknesses of Carlsen and Karjakin? We asked experts, officials, and chess authors how they see the match and what they expect from Carlsen and Karjakin. A lot of experts, a lot of opinions. Statements.

11/6/2016 – After officially retiring from professional play, many fans might have worried the Hungarian star would drop out of the chess world, but these fears seem to have been put to rest. We first saw Judit Polgar embrace new roles such as coach of the Hungarian ‘Open’ team at the Olympiad, and now as another first, when Magnus Carlsen and Sergey Karjakin battle it out in New York City, she will be the official commentator. Judit Polgar talks about her expectations, her preferences and her plans.

7/22/2016 – In round eight of the "Masters" in Bilbao Sergey Karjakin and Magnus Carlsen drew after only 19 moves. In his video analysis of the game Daniel King wonders whether Carlsen could have trapped Karjakin's queen instead of repeating moves. He also takes a look at the endgame that Wesley So won against Anish Giri - Wesley So's first win in the "Masters" and the only decisive game of round eight.

7/21/2016 – Today, 21st July 2016, 16.00 CEST, Magnus Carlsen and Sergey Karjakin will meet in the eighth round of the Bilbao Masters. It is the last game these two will play before their World Championship match in November and it will be their 21st game with classical time-control. The current overall score favors Carlsen: He won 4 games, lost 1, 15 were drawn. All five decisive encounters were examples of brilliant modern chess. Here they are again – with comments by Mihail Marin, Sergey Karjakin and Magnus Carlsen.

7/15/2016 – If the encounter between Magnus Carlsen and Sergey Karjakin in the third round of the "Masters" in Bilbao is anything to go by Karjakin will not have an easy time in the World Championship match against Carlsen in November. But maybe this was only a final rehearsal that went wrong. At any rate, their game was a rather one-sided affair in which Carlsen smashed Karjakin in a smooth attack. With this victory Carlsen took the sole lead in the tournament.

7/12/2016 – All players in the field of the "Masters Final" are tremendously strong and deserve attention but the limelight will definitely be on World Champion Magnus Carlsen and World Champion Challenger Sergey Karjakin. It is the last time these two will meet before their World Championship match in November. Follow the games live and with commentary on playchess.com.

4/15/2016 – In three days, on 18th April, the Altibox Norway Chess tournament will begin. With World Champion Magnus Carlsen as favorite. Before the tournament Klaudia Prevezanos interviewed Carlsen for the "Deutsche Welle" and Carlsen talked about computers, his preparation for the Norway Chess tournament, the World Championship, and his relationship to Sergey Karjakin.