ChessBase

• Oldest chess book auctioned at Sotheby's

  The oldest surviving chess book is Lucena's "Repetición de Amores y Arte de Ajedrez" from 1497. One of the few remaining copies is now being auctioned at Sotheby's. Anyone looking to spruce up their chess book collection should seize this opportunity. | Photo: Sotheby's

• Reykjavík Open - Live!

  The Reykjavík Open is taking place from 25 to 31 March at the Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre, once again bringing together a large international field for its traditional nine-round Swiss competition. Led by top seed Amin Tabatabaei and featuring a mix of experienced contenders - such as Vasyl Ivanchuk - and young stars, the event continues a tradition that dates back to Mikhail Tal's victory in the inaugural 1964 edition. | Follow the action live starting at 17.00 CET (12.00 ET, 21.30 IST)

• Deshmukh, Gledura: Hand & Brain - The tactic everyone missed

  At the Prague International Chess Festival 2026, the popular Hand & Brain format followed right after the main event, bringing together Grandmasters, Challengers, Futures players, celebrities, and sponsors in mixed teams for four entertaining rounds. Among the standout games was the pairing of Divya Deshmukh & Christina Jordan against Bao Anh Angelina Nguyen Doan & Benjamin Gledura. The game seemed firmly in White’s hands before the momentum shifted dramatically, turning into a commanding position for Black. In a remarkable finish, Gledura discovered a brilliant tactical idea that everyone else at the table missed—including his own partner.

• Bundesliga: Viernheim ahead of Baden-Baden with three rounds to go

  After twelve rounds of the 2025/26 Bundesliga season, SC Viernheim lead the standings with a three-point margin over OSG Baden-Baden, while Schachfreunde Wolfhagen remain within reach in third place. The latest weekend saw Viernheim maintain their perfect record with two further wins, as both Baden-Baden and Wolfhagen dropped points in drawn matches. The title race is set to be shaped by direct encounters at the three final rounds in Berlin. | Pictured: Viernheim's Igor Kovalenko | Photo: Angelika Valkova

• Swiss IM highlights ChessBase as key tool in ambitious Elo climb

  Oliver Kurmann wants to become a grandmaster – at the age of 41! In an interview with the Swiss Chess Federation, the international master from Switzerland, who competed for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga last weekend, talks about his career, training and ambitions - with ChessBase playing a key role. | Pictured: Oliver Kurmann drew his game last weekend in the Chess Bundesliga for Bayern Munich - he faced Georg Meier of SC Viernheim | Photo: Angelika Valkova

• Niemann and Liang set for 12-game classical match at Blitz Society in Paris

  A classical match between Hans Niemann and Awonder Liang will take place in Paris from 10 to 15 April, as the US grandmasters contest a 12-game showdown at the Blitz Society. Played at a 60+30 time control with two games per day, the encounter combines sporting stakes with a charitable pledge from the loser. Both players arrive with recent match experience, adding competitive context to a fixture unfolding alongside the Candidates cycle. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Saint Louis Chess Club (US Championship 2025)

• The Birth of a Journey

  Praful Zaveri is the founder of Indian Chess School, where he has trained more than 5000 students. In 2023 he began writing a book, Shat Shat Vande Chess, on the cultural, historical, and philosophical journey of chess, on the 15,000‑year “odyssey” of the game. Now he has decided to make it into a film. Here is the first trailer – and Praful's thoughts on the enterprise.

• Chess Olympiad: Cloud power for your national squad

  Success in world-class chess is built long before the game begins. With the "Federation Package", developed specifically for national federations, players and coaches gain access to the complete professional ChessBase software, the world's largest chess database, and powerful cloud analysis – at a price that provides up to five times more computing power than individual solutions! A long-term investment that will measurably enhance the performance of the entire team.

• News on the 1896 Schiffers vs Steinitz Match

  Wilhelm Steinitz had lost his World Championship title to Emanuel Lasker in 1894, but he still retained the right to a return match. That rematch was scheduled to take place in Moscow at the end of 1896. Before that, however, Steinitz played a training match against Emanuel Schiffers. Join us on a brief journey back in time to Rostov-on-Don in 1896.

• Endgame Challenge Solutions

  Were you able to solve the challenge positions we gave you last week? Were you able to defeat the diagrams, which defended tenatiously? Today we bring you all solutions, with very instructive video explanations by Jared Modica, a chess content creator from Austin, Texas. He shows us how to solve tatical lines of play, and how to handle pawns in endgames.