Las Vegas Freestyle will take place July 16–20, 2025, at the Wynn Las Vegas, specifically in the 50,000-square-foot Lafite Ballroom. It’s the third leg of the 2025 tour – after Paris Freestyle and Grenke Freestyle – and the first Freestyle Chess event in the U.S. open to live spectators. It features 16 top grandmasters in a five-day event with a group stage (round-robin, 10+10 time control) followed by a double-elimination knockout (30+30 for key stages). The prize fund is $750,000, contributing to the tour’s points system to crown the first Freestyle Chess Champion in Cape Town, scheduled for December 2025. Co-founded by Carlsen and Jan Henric Buettner, Freestyle Chess emphasizes raw talent over opening preparation due to randomized starting positions. The Las Vegas event marks a push for a high-energy, spectator-friendly format, backed by a $20 million investment.

Las Vegas Freestyle participants

Magnus Carlsen (Norway, calendar)
Hikaru Nakamura (USA, calendar)
Fabiano Caruana (USA, calendar)
Arjun Erigaisi (India, calendar)
Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan, calendar)
Leinier Dominguez (USA, calendar)
Vincent Keymer (Germany, calendar)
Ian Nepomniachtchi (FID, calendar)
Levon Aronian (USA, calendar)
Wesley So (USA, calendar)
Praham Maghsoodloo (Iran, calendar)
Praggnanandhaa R (India, calendar)
Hans Niemann (USA, calendar)
Javokhir Sindarov (Uzbekistan, calendar)
Vidit Gujrathi (India, calendar)
Bibisara Assaubayeva (Kazakhstan, calendar)

More on the Las Vegas Freestyle tournament

This is a developing story and you may want to bookmark this article, as rolling updates will appear here before and during the event. Chessdom will provide wide coverage of one of the Top Events in The Chess Calendar, including expert opinions, live games, news coverage, and more.

Gukesh Dommaraju (Gukesh calendar), Magnus Carlsen (Carlsen calendar), Hikaru Nakamura (Nakamura calendar), Arjun Erigaisi (Erigaisi calendar), Fabiano Caruana (Caruana calendar), Wei Yi (Yi calendar) are going to play a a double-round-robin format with special Norway Chess rules. Games are played with a time control of 120 minutes with an increment of 10 seconds starting from move 41. If a game is drawn, an Armageddon game is played to determine the winner. Norway Chess 2025 schedule and information

Live games from Norway Chess 2025 will be daily on Chessdom. For more tournament coverage sign up for the Chessdom Newsletter in the form below, it is free

Norway Chess 2025 live

Norway Chess 2025 video

Magnus Carlsen won the encounter with a total score 4-2. But the score does not tell the whole story! Carlsen took the lead in game 3, after defeating Nakamura with white. Hikaru had a shot in the next game, but in a rare turn of events resigned in a winning position, missing 33. Rfg3! Replay the game below.

If you are looking for more action by Carlsen and Nakamura, do not forget to check out the complete Magnus Carlsen calendar and the complete Hikaru Nakamura calendar, which are now integral parts of The Chessdom Chess Calendar

After the game where Hikaru resigned in a winning position, Magnus Carlsen gave an interview where he discussed the upcoming EWC, the games of the final, and even his big glass on stream (see the video here)

Invited players: Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Gukesh D, Ding Liren, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Wei Yi. Live games will be daily on Chessdom, while additional news can be found in the Chessdom Newsletter – you can sign up for free in the form below

New: If you are looking for more action by Carlsen and Nakamura, do not forget to check out the complete Magnus Carlsen calendar and the complete Hikaru Nakamura calendar, which are now integral parts of The Chessdom Chess Calendar

Chess.com Classic 2025

Play in knockout

Play in Swiss

The Chess.com Classic kicks off with the qualifiers for non-grandmasters on May 18 at 11 a.m. ET / 17:00 CEST / 8:30 p.m. IST. The Play-In starts a day later at the same time, with the Playoffs taking place from May 20 to May 23.

More: Nakamura vs Leela with knight odds / Carlsen wins Grenke with 9,0/9 / Replay Ding Liren vs Gukesh / Magnus Carlsen Clinches Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Title in Thrilling Final Against Hikaru Nakamura

Chess.com Classic Qualifier (May 18)

Starts: 8:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

Non-grandmaster titled players compete in a Swiss, with the top three making it to the Play-In.

• Open to all non-grandmaster titled players
• Players contest a nine-round Swiss
• Time control: 10+0
• The top three players are eligible to compete in the Play-In

Chess.com Classic Play-in (May 19)

Starts: 8:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

Qualified players join grandmasters to compete in two phases, Swiss and Match Play. The winner of the Swiss goes straight to the Playoffs. Players ranked second through 15th go to Match Play, with the winners reaching the Playoffs.

• Open to all grandmasters and the top three players from the Qualifier
• Time control: 10+0
• Players compete in a nine-round Swiss
• The top player from the Swiss goes straight to the Playoffs and selects their bracket position
• Players ranked second through 15th advance to Match Play
• Players ranked second through eighth choose their opponents
• The 14 players who compete in the Match Play phase contest a two-game match
• The winner of each Match Play match moves on to the Playoffs

Chess.com Classic Playoffs (May 20 – 23)

Starts: 8:15 PT / 11:15 ET / 17:15 CET

Eight invited players join the eight players who made it to the Playoffs to compete for top prize money and CCT Points, which may grant them a spot at the Esports World Cup.

• Eight invited players join the eight players who made it to the Playoffs
• Players contest a double-elimination bracket
• Winners Bracket matches consist of four games
• Losers Bracket matches consist of two games
• Grand Final match consists of four games
• Grand Final Reset, if necessary, consists of two games
• If the match ends in a tie, a bidding armageddon game with a base time of 10 minutes decides the winner

Divisions Cash Prizes

Graham Banks comments, “Hikaru Nakamura played 16 games with LeelaKnightOdds at 3’+2″, winning the first game, drawing the last one and one other, and losing 13, including ten in a row! His score of 12.5% was actually much better than other top GMs against the same version; players in the World top 50 (FIDE) scored only 4% in 80 games before this, without a single win! He played only g1 odds, not b1. He only intended to play 3 games, but after losing games 2 and 3 wanted to keep playing until he got a second win, which never happened. I think he could do somewhat better with a bit of opening preparation and less talking, but he regularly wins Titled Tuesday while talking so it doesn’t seem to hurt his play too much.”

Do you want to try Leela Pieces Odds yourself? Go to Lichess and give it a shot

Note: Top Chess Engine Championship Swiss 8, where Leela will defend its title, starts this May 9. Follow the live action at the official website

More results of the round:
Jan-Krzysztof Duda – R Praggnanandhaa 0 – 1
Yu Yangui – Richard Rapport – 1/2 – 1/2
Bibisara Assaubayeva – Yifan Hou – 1/2 – 1/2
Elizabeth Paehtz – Kateryna Lagno – 1 – 0
Jonas Buhl Bjerre – Daniel Dardha – 0 – 1

More Nakamura versus Carlsen: Nakamura and Carlsen are playing a private match / Magnus Carlsen vs Hikaru Nakamura; Airthings Masters Winners Final – LIVE /

Hikaru Nakamura – Magnus Carlsen

Live games will be daily on Chessdom.com , with video and games coverage

Alpine SG Pipers Magnus Carlsen, Praggnanandhaa R, Richard Rapport, Hou Yifan, Kateryna Lagno, Daniel Dardha

Ganges Grandmasters Viswanathan Anand, Arjun Erigaisi, Parham Maghsoodloo, Vaishali R, Nurgyul Salimova, Volodar Murzin

Mumba Masters Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Vidit Gujrathi, Alexander Grischuk, Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, Raunak Sadhwani

PBG Alaskan Knights Anish Giri, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Tan Zhongyi, Alina Kashlinskaya, Nihal Sarin

Triveni Continental Kings Ian Nepomniachtchi, Wei Yi, Teimour Radjabov, Alexandra Kosteniuk, Valentina Gunina, Javokhir Sindarov

American Gambits Hikaru Nakamura, Vladislav Artemiev, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Bibisara Assaubayeva, Elisabeth Paehtz, Jonas Buhl Bjerre

More about GCL: Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2024 detailed information / Live games

Billed as the IPL of chess, this will be the second season of the Global Chess League, a ridiculously strong six-team competition run on a franchise system. Each team comprises six players and will take part in a double-round all-play-all, before the top two sides play off for the title. All games are a brisk 20 minutes per player – without any increment – so expect plenty of dramatic time scrambles.

Last year’s inaugural Tech Mahindra Global Chess League in Dubai saw a quite gripping final: Triveni Continental Kings and upGrad Mumba Masters finished level at 6-6. Two rounds of extra time or rather blitz failed to alter the equilibrium, meaning a penalty shoot-out type scenario: a series of sudden death blitz games began, ending when the young Danish Grandmaster Jonas Bjerre defeated teenage Uzbek Olympiad star Javokhir Sindarov.

Following his dominant performance in the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship – crushing Hans Niemann 17½-12½ then Alireza Firouzja by a whopping 23½-7½ in the final in Paris – all eyes will be on the dominant world number one, Magnus Carlsen, who heads up the Alpine SG Pipers. Their two ‘superstar men’ are 19-year-old Indian sensation Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Richard Rapport, with their two ‘superstar women’ also mightily impressive: Hou Yifan and Kateryna Lagno. Throw in 18-year-old Belgian number one Daniel Dardha as the ‘prodigy’ and it’s not hard to see why the Pipers are favourites.

The legendary Vishy Anand is a worthy icon if ever there was one and heads up the Ganges Grandmasters. The former world champion will have to do battle with not just Carlsen, but his fellow icons: Hikaru Nakamura (American Gambits), Ian Nepomniachtchi (Triveni Continental Kings), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Mumba Masters) and Anish Giri (PBG Alaskan Knights).

Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2024 participants

Alpine SG Pipers Magnus Carlsen, Praggnanandhaa R, Richard Rapport, Hou Yifan, Kateryna Lagno, Daniel Dardha

Ganges Grandmasters Viswanathan Anand, Arjun Erigaisi, Parham Maghsoodloo, Vaishali R, Nurgyul Salimova, Volodar Murzin

Mumba Masters Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Vidit Gujrathi, Alexander Grischuk, Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, Raunak Sadhwani

PBG Alaskan Knights Anish Giri, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Tan Zhongyi, Alina Kashlinskaya, Nihal Sarin

Triveni Continental Kings Ian Nepomniachtchi, Wei Yi, Teimour Radjabov, Alexandra Kosteniuk, Valentina Gunina, Javokhir Sindarov

American Gambits Hikaru Nakamura, Vladislav Artemiev, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Bibisara Assaubayeva, Elisabeth Paehtz, Jonas Buhl Bjerre

The team line-ups were determined by an auction, which took place in August in Delhi. Each franchise was allocated 1000 points for five players in their team (the icon top boards were already decided), with any players they wished to retain from last year costing 200 points. Bidding for each new player began at 50 points and could go all the way up to 800!

To buy tickets for the Global Chess League (Friends House, London) please visit chess.co.uk. Tickets are available for each of the 10 days: Thursday October 3rd to Saturday October 12th. For the very keen, there’s also the option of a season pass, and packages are available for group and chess club bookings – contact info@chess.co.uk for more details.

Play begins at 1pm on each of the first nine days, with further rounds at 3pm and 4.45pm, as well as 2.15pm on some days (the final kicks off at 2.15pm on October 12th). There will be a lot of chess, high quality chess at that, as well as commentary at the venue and analysis for the audience supplied between rounds.

In a major shift from the traditional structure, the 2024 World Blitz Championship will be decided through a two-stage format. The first stage will follow the familiar Swiss system, consisting of 13 rounds for the open section and 11 rounds for the women’s section, with a time control of 3 minutes + 2 seconds increment per move. The top eight players from this stage will qualify for the knockout phase. The knockout stage will feature four-game matches, allowing players to have ample fighting opportunities, and giving viewers a show that will keep them on the edge of their seats.

Nakamura adds to the issue and explains that the previous format was giving more chances to lower rated players, while with the new format only the top guns have a shot. “I do not think that this is a good idea, I actually think it is a terrible idea,” says Nakamura. He also adds worries that the format changes are going to spread to the World Cup, where the proposition is to lower the time control.

You would think Nakamura stops the criticism there, but he continues, “Now that they are structuring it as a knockout, you do not know how long you are staying there. […] Basically you do not know what to do. Do you assume you play only the first phase? Do you assume you reach the knockout stage? […] For travel plans the amount of money people have to spend is exorbitant.”

And Nakamura does not stop there. So we have a new game: follow the video and make your count

Nakamura said, “Yes, it’s what you believe. Carlsen and I are playing a private classical match. If the chess community or some generous billionaire can come up with $1M US we will split the funds and release the PGNs. Any takers?”

In the end it turned out to be a technical glitch of 2700chess.com, which Nakamura was joking about. Still, we are sure if someone comes up with 1 million usd for a Nakamura – Carlsen match, the players will not decline to participate.