“It’s a bad situation” – Firstpost

The International Chess Federation (Fide) and the Freestyle Chess Players Club (FCPC), led by Magnus Carlsen, have been involved in a fight for some time now. The Fide had officially recognized the FCPC and the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour in December 2024, but shortly after, there were charges that Fide had been forced to conclude an agreement to avoid dealing with players like Carlsen withdrawing from Quick World Championships and Blitz.

The controversy intensified after the jeans scandal involving the Norwegian Grand Master was revealed during the tournament. Carlsen was sentenced to a fine of $ 200 and disqualified from the Rapid and Blitz World Championships. He also accused the Fide, saying that the world chess corps threatened the players they are forbidden to participate in the world championship cycle if they participated in the Grand Slam of Freestyle chess.

And only a few days ago, The Fide accused players like Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura to divide the world of chess by forming the FCPC. The Fide, for their part, also said that they had officially recognized that the FCPC “out of good will”.

Explained | The growing hold of Magnus Carlsen on the world of chess and why the Norwegian GM is so influential

Nakamura urges the best players, including the Indians, to boycott Fide

Hikaru Nakamura, the world No. 3, has now criticized Fide and urged the best players to boycott the Fide. Nakamura expressed her opinions in a video that was downloaded from her official YouTube channel.

While Nakamura asked them to boycott the Fide, he also encouraged them to participate in tournaments such as Freestyle Grand Slam Tour, which offers higher prices. The FCPC also tried to obtain its own world championship tournament recognized by the Fide, but failed to do so.

The great masters of the Indians who are part of the FCPC include Viswanathan Anand, world champion of Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi and Praggnanandhaa.

“I hope that the other best players, we can communicate, in a coherent way in a way that we are talking about, and I do not believe that Fide can do whatever, we want to play this event. We want to play every event as if you couldn’t really do this’.

“If the 20 best players or the majority of the 20 best players are resisting this, Fide will have to go back. It’s just reality, because Fide will not be able to get sponsors for events if you don’t have the best players. It is reality. I don’t know what the other best players think, I’m sure I will talk to Fabiano at some point in the future. Obviously, I know what Magnus’ point of view is on this subject, “he said.

“The bottom is simply that it is a bad situation. Very, very bad situation. Who knows what’s going to happen? questioned.

That said, Emil Sutovsky, the CEO of Fide, said that the players, including Carlsen and Hikaru, had signed a contract that had been contrary to participation in non-info world championship tournaments.

https://twitter.com/EmilSutovsky/status/1881977448490832030?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

“All the players, including Magnus and Hikaru, in fact signed a binding obligation not to participate in any” world championship “not approved by Fide for four years. Magnus signed it in 2023, other best players in 2024. Yes, you can always claim that you are above all a streamer – but that does not mean that you have no contractual obligations, ”he had written on “X”.

If the best players