ChessBase

• This weekend: Berlin to host decisive closing rounds of Bundesliga

  The 2025/26 Chess Bundesliga season concludes with three rounds in Berlin from 24 to 26 April. SC Viernheim lead the standings by three match points over OSG Baden-Baden, with Schachfreunde Wolfhagen still within reach in third place (a win grants two MPs). The final weekend features direct encounters between all three teams, while teams at the bottom of the table will fight hard to avoid relegation. | Photo: Berlin.de

• Ding Liren is back!

  Ding Liren is back. After losing the World Championship title in December 2024, Ding Liren took a long break from classical chess tournaments and only participated in online or rapid events. At the Chinese Team Championships, he has now returned to classical chess - successfully. | Photos: Sports Bureau of Heilongjiang Province

• Unmissable: Caruana on Sindarov, Nakamura and the Candidates

  Fabiano Caruana reflects on his showing at the Candidates Tournament while explaining why he believes Javokhir Sindarov produced one of the strongest performances in the event's history. Caruana discusses Sindarov's opening preparation, his own missed chances, Hikaru Nakamura's costly opening preparation mistake and the likely balance of the forthcoming world title match against Gukesh Dommaraju. | Photo: ChessBase / Nils Rohde

• ESPN explores chess boom in the NBA

  Chess has become an increasingly common pastime among NBA players, and an ESPN article published on 18 April explores why. From Victor Wembanyama's games in New York to Derrick Rose's chess event in Las Vegas, the report looks at how players are embracing the game as a way to sharpen focus, improve decision-making and stay mentally engaged during the long NBA season. | Photo: Wemby's X account

• Problem Challenge April

  Were you able to handle the four rook endgame studies we showed you recently? They were a little bit harder to solve than they looked. We now bring you all the intricacies and subtleties in short videos by IM Gauri Shankar, who works as a chess trainer in Chicago. And of course we give you full analysis in a ChessBase replayer, where you can switch on an engine to help resolve any residual questions.

• Regulations for FIDE Rapid and Blitz

  Preparations are fully underway for the FIDE World Team Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships 2026 in Hong Kong from 16 to 22 June. In previous editions, the tournament has featured numerous top players competing alongside amateurs and rising talents, producing a dynamic atmosphere rarely seen in traditional elite events. Magnus Carlsen is expected to participate in Hong Kong, adding further star power to the competition.

• Candidates Round 14 - Live!

  The Candidates Tournaments form the final qualifying stage of the FIDE World Championship cycle. Each tournament features eight of the world's strongest players competing in a double round-robin format over fourteen rounds of classical chess. No fewer than six players (out of eight) enter the final round with mathematical chances of winning the Women's Candidates Tournament. | Follow the games live with expert commentary starting at 14.30 CEST (8.30 ET, 18.00 IST) | Photo: Michal Walusza

• A Game That Outlasted the Day (4)

  It should be clearly emphasized that the longest chess game of all time can only arise by chance. Any prior agreement between the opponents before the game—such as, "Let’s play the longest game in history today!" – or any such understanding reached during the game, automatically turns them into cheaters, with all the ensuing consequences. Estonian chess expert and trainer, Valery Golubenko, tells us about the struggle to regulate very long theoretical endings.

• A Game That Outlasted the Day (3)

  Two months ago Valery Golubenko played what may well have been one of the longest chess games ever seen, measured by number of moves, under the rather restrictive conditions of modern chess life. At move 88, with queen and b-pawn against queen, Golubenko's opponent held for 37 moves, until he missed an only move, and it was theoretically a mate in 47. | Photo during the game by Chess Club Kaksikodad – from the right, GM Aleksandr Volodin and the chief arbiter Askold Nassar

• 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.