ChessBase

• Global Chess League - Live!

  The Tech Mahindra Global Chess League returns for its third season from 14 to 23 December, continuing its franchise-based format that combines elite male and female players. Featuring a team structure with fixed lineups, the league again brings together established stars and juniors, with the title to be decided through a double round-robin stage followed by a two-match final. | Follow the action live starting at 12.30 CET (6.30 ET, 17.00 IST)

• GCL: Firouzja's Continental Kings now sole leaders

  The Global Chess League reached a turning point as the first half of the double round-robin came to an end in Mumbai. Triveni Continental Kings emerged as the sole leaders after defeating their closest rivals, upGrad Mumba Masters. The defending champions were again led by Alireza Firouzja, who maintained a perfect record by winning his fifth consecutive game. | Photos: Official website

• Father of the Modern School

  In his article IM Zoran Petronijević raises some fundamental questions: How relevant is Steinitz’s legacy today, does it still speak to modern chess, or does it belong to a bygone, almost “dinosaur” era? Does the analysis of his creative work possess genuine practical value, or do we study it merely for its historical significance? Equally important is the question: What, in concrete terms, did Steinitz contribute to chess?

• Triumph amid war: Ukraine's success at the European Team Championship - an interview with Alexander Beliavsky and Adrian Mikhalchishin

  At the European Team Championship 2025, Ukraine’s men won gold and the women won silver — an exceptional achievement under difficult circumstances. In an in-depth interview, team captain Alexander Beliavsky and coach Adrian Mikhalchishin reflect on the role of team spirit, emerging talent, and resilience in one of the most remarkable successes in Ukrainian chess history. | The photos in the text come from the Ukrainian team

• London Chess Classic - Live!

  The XTX Markets London Chess Classic is a 10-player all-play-all tournament taking place from 26 November to 5 December at the Emirates Stadium, home to Arsenal Football Club. Four English players and six international representatives make up the lineup, which includes top seeds Alireza Firouzja and Nodirbek Abdusattorov. | Follow the games live with expert commentary starting at 17.00 CET (11.00 ET, 21.30 IST)

• Attacking and sacrifice games

  Ed Schröder, pioneer of chess engine programming, has in his retirement turned his attention to a new and very exciting project: to extract games from a database collection that are especially aggressive – that are short and have daring sacrifices and king attacks. He shows us the kinds of result you can get. Best of all: you can download the utility and use it on your databases.

• Rebel and playing style in chess

  Ed Schröder is a pioneer in chess programming. In the 1990s his program Rebel won a number of World Championships in computer chess, and always had a special place in the community, due to its playing style. In 2003 he retired from competitive computer chess, only releasing freeware versions of Rebel. Now Ed has come out of retirement and is undertaking some interesting new projects – like extracting the most interesting games from historical databases. And he is sharing them with us.

• Riddle: Korchnoi-Karpov 1978

  As chess players occasionally do, Alex Fishbein, the U.S. grandmaster, was recently looking at a classic game from the past: Viktor Kortschnoj's victory over Anatoly Karpov in the 21st game of their 1978 match. Something was wrong. Charles Sullivan had done some intense research on this volatile encounter and asks for your assessment on the results he presents.

• FIDE World Cup, Finals - Live!

  Today marks the final day of the World Cup in Goa, which began on October 31. But the key question of who will play in the Candidates Tournament in March and April 2026 has already been settled: Wei Yi, Javokhir Sindarov and Andrey Esipenko are in. Now it’s “only” a matter of deciding who wins the tournament. That will be determined today in the tiebreak between Wei Yi and Sindarov. The winner takes home the title and 120,000 USD, the runner-up receives 85,000 USD. | Follow the action live with expert commentary starting at 10.30 CET (5.30 ET, 15.00 IST)

• Ivan Sokolov: Understanding Middlegame Strategy Vol 12: Reversed Colour Systems – King’s Indian/Pirc Defence

  Ivan Sokolov’s new course examines colour-reversed King’s Indian and Pirc structures, showing how extra tempi influence typical plans and why these positions feel uncomfortable for humans but not for engines. He analyses key model games from Kramnik, Botvinnik, and Fischer, demonstrating that White usually gets a pleasant setup without a guaranteed advantage, leading to sharp, dynamic battles decided by understanding rather than theory. The course equips practical players, both with white and black, with clear ideas, typical patterns, and concrete plans for navigating these complex reversed-colour systems.