FIDE claims authority over any Chess World Championship

FIDE has released a new statement on the “Freestyle Chess Players Club” and the Chess960 initiative spearheaded by Magnus Carlsen. In it, they begin by identifying its own “supreme role with respect to the rules, titles, and ratings” of chess, and state their openness to co-operation with private organizations, before reaching their point: they vehemently disapprove with any event being called a ‘World Championship’ outside of its influence.

They make the claim that “FIDE retains all its legal rights related to the World Championship title and will be ready to challenge organizers and initiators of any series that decide to brand themselves as a “World Championship” without the approval of FIDE,” and conclude with a warning of legal action against “those who violate its rights,” plus a declaration that all players qualified in the 2025-26 World Championship cycle will be expected to sign a contract that would indicate “participation in any alternative world chess championships in any variation of chess not approved by FIDE” would prohibit them from playing in two consecutive World Championship cycles.

IM John Bartholomew was one to comment on Twitter, writing “Chess 960/Freestyle is not traditional chess. Citing the FIDE Handbook (??) is not a legal argument.” Indeed it hardly makes sense that something written in the FIDE Handbook can give FIDE authority over distinct, outside events. Journalist David Llada also noted that FIDE had failed to organize a Chess960 World Championship in 2023 and 2024.

This has become much ink spilled over a niche project of the World #1.