Behind the scenes of the conflicting Freestyle project

Creation in July 2024

In February 2024, Jan Henric Buettner, an entrepreneur from Hamburg, organized a tournament in Weissenhaus. The games took place in his luxurious Ostholstein seaside resort. Players and journalists alike were delighted with the first-class hospitality. Buettner enjoyed the chess event, which he says cost him around €2 million. He wanted more, and Magnus Carlsen was there too. On July 25, the project announced in a press release the creation of a new company, Freestyle Chess Operations GmbH, based in Hamburg. The participation of Left Lane Capitala New York-based venture capitalist, amounts to $12 million. A Freestyle Chess Grand Slam tournament series for top players was announced. The seed capital is to be used to establish the tournament series. The stated aim is to revolutionize the world of chess and write a new chapter in its history. Harley Miller, CEO and Managing Partner of Left Lane Capital, even saw the potential to create a mainstream sporting event comparable to Formula 1 and the ATP Tennis Tour.

Press release July 25, 2024

The world’s best players are at the center of this new chess series, in which nine supergrandmasters are handpicked by Magnus Carlsen, who is committed to playing Freestyle Chess exclusively as part of the Grand Slam series. All tournaments take place in exclusive venues, with an aura of luxury and style, and all games will be played according to chess960 rules. Freestyle Chess already had a blueprint tournament in February that set the bar very high.

It’s not unusual in the world of business and start-ups to make a lot of noise. In the world of chess, however, such sound bites are rather rare and are generally regarded with skepticism by most observers, following the experience of similar announcements in the past.

“Chess needs to evolve into a more dynamic and captivating spectacle that allows players to demonstrate their skills from the very first move.”

Magnus Carlsen

Announcement of tour and opening event in October 2024

On the sidelines of the Global Chess League in London, Jan Buettner gave a brief interview to Sagar Shah of Chessbase India in October 2024 and announced a show battle in Singapore. Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana were to face off before the world championship match and promote freestyle chess. In addition, a press conference was to be held to provide further information. Buettner is said to have coordinated dates with FIDE and announced five events for 2025.

The dates and locations of the tournaments are now known. In 2025, five tournaments will be held in Weissenhaus, Paris, New York, Delhi and Cape Town. Dates can be found on website. In the July 2024 press release, there was still talk of six to eight tournaments a year. The prize board is sumptuous and is expected to be $750,000 for the first three tournaments, rising to $1 million per tournament.according to the initial press release.

Climbing in November 2024

The freestyle project presented its plans in Singapore to great fanfare. The venue was, as usual for Buettner projects, first class: we played on a yacht and, for security reasons, in a safe with a gold table. India’s Tania Sachdev was on hand as presenter. Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana, world No.1 and No.2 respectively, even played their exhibition match on the roof of a hotel and then held a press conference with Buettner at the Ritz Carlton hotel. Despite their best efforts, the press conference turned out to be a non-event. Is it because FIDE did not respect the agreements and former world champion Vishwanathan Anand cancelled the joint event at the last minute? At least, that’s what one camp is hearing. It’s a plausible explanation, even if the other side maintains that the Buettner team’s attitude of trying to pull the wool over its own eyes is to blame for the cooling of relations.

On November 24, 2024, Magnus Carlsen posts on X a provocative message. In it, he declares that freestyle chess would be of greater importance than classical chess. Reactions under the tweet are divided. The criticism of classical chess can also be heard and seen in the video. Such a statement doesn’t seem appropriate when the world championship between Ding Liren and Gukesh kicks off the next day.

Things get tough behind the scenes

In the meantime, the public knows more about the conflict, even if the facts are not certain and it is difficult to be impartial. In the background, a dispute between FIDE and the Freestyle project is already taking shape. The various reactions of the protagonists on social networks could essentially serve as a tactical transmission of information “à la Trump”. Freestylers give interviews and write letters. Emil Sutovsky, CEO of FIDE, prefers to write messages on X, formerly Twitter. He’s no slouch either, but is at least more reserved in public.

In public, we defend ourselves well

In an X message from the freestylers on December 21, 2024, mention is made of negotiations between the players and FIDE that were said to have ended peacefully two days earlier. The players are cited as negotiators. Elite GMs Carlsen and Nakamura speak on their behalf, and Danny Rensch, Chief Chess Officer of the chess.com platform, is also on board. Freestyle GmbH will be represented by Buettner. Freestyle Chess and chess.com had announced their cooperation in Singapore. This cooperation focuses on joint marketing.

In the freestylers’ letter, the subject of world championships is raised for the first time. The freestyle organization confidently – some would say arrogantly – announces that it will mutually recognize world championship titles. For FIDE, which considers itself the rightful owner of the world championship rights, such wording can hardly be acceptable, as it would set a precedent. Buettner and his team must have realized this. The letter in the form of a press release attempts to create facts and is a provocation. Buettner and Carlsen may have underestimated Dvorkovich. In the name of FIDE, Dvorkovich contradicts the presentation of the Freestyle project, which refers to an agreement with FIDE:

I take note of the press release issued by the Freestyle Chess Players Club. If my quote has been correctly reproduced, I would like to make it clear that my decision as FIDE President was based on direct communication with the players. However, the full press release was not discussed with me and contains significant inaccuracies that misrepresent the situation.

FIDE remains committed to transparency and fairness, and we will issue a statement on this matter next week.

FIDE President

Arkady Dvorkovich

Rumors are flying

On December 26, 2024, the World Rapid Chess Championship is due to kick off in New York. Information is first circulated in a targeted manner, then made public, to the effect that Carlsen and Nakamura may not take part due to FIDE dispute – this sheds new light on Carlsen’s shenanigans both during the rapid tournament and at the end of the blitz… . Is this an empty threat? Or rather a targeted piece of information designed to make the dispute even more public? In any case, both players are taking part in the tournament after all. For Magnus Carlsen, things just don’t add up this time. On the second day, Carlsen showed up in jeans, collected a fine and received a warning before excluding himself from the tournament. The rest will go down in recent chess history as “Jeansgate”. A sort of civil peace was restored two days later. It is not known what prompted Magnus Carlsen, who had insulted FIDE, to finally take part in the blitz tournament. Arkadij Dvorkovich and Henrik Carlsen are said to have had a calming influence on the superstar.

Magnus feels the wind turning and adds to it.

This was followed by another remarkably undiplomatic interview with Carlsen on his home TV channel. “Take Take Take”. This interview does little to ease tensions between FIDE and freestylers. Quite the contrary, in fact. Even internally, this stance must not have pleased everyone in his own team. Carlsen expressly congratulates Dvorkovich and, even more surprisingly, the CEO of Freedom Holding’s main sponsor, Timur Turlov, on their efforts to secure his return to the New York tournament.

Carlsen’s coach, Peter Heine Nielsen, probably didn’t appreciate the praise. Indeed, he is constantly criticizing FIDE, for example, for receiving too much Russian money compared to other sources of funding. As part of the ongoing Russia bashing, Nielsen has long been publicly attacking Turlov, a Kazakh entrepreneur born in Russia, as being close to Russia and with rumors of stock market misconduct.

Regarding the conflict between FIDE and the Freestyle project, Carlsen declares that not all FIDE officials present in New York are adults. He excludes Dvorkovich, who is not even present in New York, from his insult. Vishwanathan Anand, current FIDE vice-president, tried to convince Magnus’ father to make his son reconsider his decision not to take part in the blitz. But Magnus didn’t exclude him from his criticism. Anand now also features in the virtual club of freestyle players and is scheduled to take part in the Weissenhaus tournament in February. No.1 even goes so far as to gratuitously attack Anand in his role as FIDE vice-president. This aspect would later interest the Indian media. The former world champion prefers to ignore the Norwegian’s perfidy, not bothering to comment on his verbal attacks.

Fabiano’s point of view in the C-Squared podcast

Caruana did not endorse the words chosen by Carlsen and Nakamura. The latter had spoken of “blackmail”. These were clauses signed by players at tournaments, binding them to FIDE for a long period. From the freestylers’ point of view, such clauses are void or, in any case, legally attackable. For Caruana, the most important thing was to be able to plan his calendar for the following year, avoiding overlaps which would be counter-productive for everyone. Shortly before, he had been the first player to qualify for the 2026 Candidate Tournament.

Caruana says literally:

I would just like to say (…) that I wouldn’t say I’ve been threatened. I didn’t use such words (…) and I wouldn’t use fancy adjectives. I was told very concretely, after Freestyle announced that they would be hosting the Freestyle World Championship next year, that I was not legally allowed to participate in such a chess world championship because of a contract I had signed in the past for the Candidates Tournament.

In the video, Fabiano further states that he received a commitment from Arkadij (Dvorkovich) not to be sanctioned in the event of participation. He understood Freestyle’s statement (of December 21, 2024) as an explanation that still seemed rather vague, but which reassured him.

Arkady Dvorkovich interviewed (January 15, 2025)

The FIDE President gave an interview to Sagar Shah of Chessbase India and answered questions about the situation in freestyle chess. Dvorkovich’s statements were in line with his previous interventions on the subject. In particular, he defended Sutovsky as a member of his team. Instead, he said, he should be attacked. A proposal that was echoed a fortnight later by the freestylers…

FIDE Declaration of January 21, 2025

FIDE has given itself a month to issue its next statement in response to the freestylers’ press release of December 21, 2025. There is nothing surprising in this, however, and the position is perfectly understandable.

IDE statement on the “Freestyle Chess” project:

With regard to recent communications from the “Freestyle Chess Players Club” (FCPC), FIDE declares the following:

The Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) is the only chess governing organization recognized internationally (notably by the International Olympic Committee), regulating all official international chess competitions. Although we have always remained open to cooperation with private organizations and to initiatives within the chess community, FIDE retains its supreme role as regards rules, titles and rankings. FIDE’s status and worldwide responsibilities to the chess community are distinct and non-negotiable.

FIDE does not object to privately run commercial platforms, projects or clubs, such as FCPC, interacting with individual players. However, the FCPC’s attempts to present their project as a World Championship are in contradiction with the well-established status of FIDE and its authority over World Championship titles in all relevant chess variants – including Chess960/Freestyle chess, as described in the FIDE Handbook.

In addition, the course of action adopted by the FCPC threatens the performance of the players’ existing contractual obligations to FIDE.

The measures taken by the FCPC project inevitably lead to divisions in the chess world – and we remember all too well the unfortunate consequences of a similar split in the not-so-distant past.

Although the formal status of the Freestyle Chess 2025 series has not yet been determined, FIDE is keen to ensure that all players can plan their schedules for 2025. Therefore – as a sign of goodwill and to provide sufficient security for players in the near future – FIDE has taken the decision to integrate the Freestyle Chess 2025 series into its calendar and to refrain from invoking the relevant legal clauses in previously signed contracts regarding player participation in 2025 Freestyle events.

Nevertheless, FIDE retains all its legal rights related to the title of World Championship and will be ready to challenge the organizers and initiators of any series who decide to present themselves as a “World Championship” without FIDE’s approval.

We are open to dialogue and hope to reach a mutually acceptable agreement, provided that FIDE’s leading role and well-established authority over World Championships is respected by potential partners.

If such an agreement is not reached, FIDE requires that the Freestyle series does not carry the status of “World Championship”. FIDE will not hesitate to use all legal means against those who violate its rights – be they the initiators, organizers and/or investors of the project.

While the 2025-2026 World Championship cycle is underway, all qualified players are required to sign an additional contract, which will include a clause stating that participation in any alternative World Championship in any chess variant not approved by FIDE (with the exception of the Freestyle tournament in 2025) would result in their exclusion from two consecutive cycles of the FIDE World Championship.

As part of the contracts, FIDE undertakes to organize the cycle’s events at the highest level, with substantially increased prices – the dates and venues of these events are published in the FIDE Calendar.

Buettner ready for war

The rhetoric clearly escapes the freestyle chef. The tone hardens and the attacks become more personal. On January 28, 2025, chess.com published an article by Tarjei Joten Svensen, a Norwegian chess journalist in his employ. Svensen reports attacks on Dvorkovich, which Buettner is said to have expressed to the Norwegian channel NRK and another Newsoutlet (VG). According to Svensen, Buettner is reacting to FIDE’s statement.

Jan Henric Buettner (quoted by Tarjei J. Svensen )

I think it’s incredibly ridiculous. I saw it coming, so it wasn’t a surprise, but it was still ridiculous.

We’re ready for war, but if FIDE is willing to show a little common sense, we’re ready to talk with them.

They can’t protect copyright. Anyone can organize it (the Freestyle World Championship) and they know they can’t stop us.

I think this will lead the top players to unite against them. And that may lead to the disintegration of the whole FIDE organization.

Freestyle Chess reportedly offered $100,000 for the use of the “World Championship” title. FIDE demanded $500,000 a year, Buettner told NRK television. Since December 09, Buettner, has had no further contact with FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich, Svensen said. (It’s possible this was December 19, because according to Freestyle, there was an agreement with FIDE at that time. What’s more, Büttner’s latest open letter, the two accolytes seem to be chatting constantly together…)

Emil’s statements (selection)

Emil Sutovsky immediately reacted on X, formerly Twitter, to the media attack broadcast via chess.com. In addition, he reiterates Magnus Carlsen’s discourteous remarks to him and his employer.

You can find the full translation of this tweet here.

Freestylers’ open letter of January 28, 2025

The January 28, 2025 open letter translated into French

Dear Emil,

Over the past year, you, Arkady and FIDE have come a long way – from you singing opera arias to me on the phone, to your request to host the FIDE Chess960 World Championship in Weissenhaus last year, to Arkady’s meeting with Henrik (Carlsen, father of who you know – NDA) and I in London for several hours to coordinate tournament schedules, so that players wouldn’t be faced with conflicting commitments.

However, collaboration became increasingly strained. One notable example was Arkady’s invitation to Magnus and Fabiano to participate in a Freestyle Chess Summit in Singapore, only to ignore and block us when we arrived. It seems that FIDE’s approach, based on a “good guy (Arkady) / bad guy (Emil)” tactic, was doomed to failure. Today, FIDE seems to have abandoned all pretense, adopting a confrontational stance towards the players. In my opinion, this change is counter-productive. Instead of engaging constructively with us – the organizers of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour – FIDE has alienated the players who are its greatest assets. Nevertheless, Freestyle remains open to dialogue and is determined to work with FIDE to avoid unnecessary conflict.

Let me clarify once again: our tour is not a “World Championship” in the traditional sense, as I explained to both Arkady and Vishy. (who, as vice-president of FIDE, has withdrawn his invitation to take part in the series – NDA). It is entitled “Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour”. At the end of each year, we crown a champion in Freestyle Chess – a format that could evolve in the future, potentially beyond Chess960 to other new formats, but not to classical chess.

The title of “World Champion” in this context reflects the unique format of our events, and is not an attempt to compete with the traditional FIDE World Championship cycle. If FIDE’s problem really lies in the use of the term “World Championship”, then it should address similar cases, such as the Bughouse World Championshipin which even players like Ding Liren took part. Yet FIDE did not sanction Ding or others for taking part. This inconsistency reveals the real motive behind FIDE’s actions: money.

Despite Freestyle’s willingness to donate $100,000 a year to FIDE – only as a gesture of goodwill and to avoid harassment – this proposal was rejected. FIDE’s demand for $500,000, an unjustifiable sum for a format in which it is not involved, suggests that monetary gain is the main driver. Our sponsors, many of whom prefer to avoid any association with FIDE, support our decision to remain independent.

FIDE’s recent actions, such as threatening players with sanctions and demanding that they sign agreements under pressure and without legal advice, are deeply worrying. This is neither ethical nor professional. FIDE is trying to exploit its dominant market position to force players into submission. Such tactics are unacceptable, and Freestyle will continue to defend players’ interests against this abuse of power.

Contrary to the FIDE approach, Freestyle puts players first. That’s why we have hired legal counsel to protect them from FIDE’s excesses. No player has violated his or her obligations; rather, it is FIDE that is acting inappropriately. Freestyle remains focused on creating a positive environment for players, allowing them to concentrate on their games without the burden of unnecessary political interference.

To sum up:

Rather than escalate the situation, I call on FIDE to return to the negotiating table and engage in constructive discussions. Harassing, threatening or sanctioning players is not only counterproductive, but also undermines the principles of fair competition and respect for the chess community.

I remain available for a conversation with you or Arkady at any time.

Best regards,

Jan

Note: it is difficult to reconcile this letter with the statements made to the Norwegian media on the same day. It is more likely that the letter was formulated by Buettner’s lawyers. It should be noted that on that day, the subsidy to FIDE was to be reduced to $50,000 per year.

Emil’s reply of January 28, 2025

Emil’s answer translated into French

I’ve spoken to Mr. Büttner on several occasions and have always expressed my positive feelings about the project. The first time was a two-hour call just after their first event. It was more than friendly, and we started looking for ways to cooperate, although he candidly mentioned that “we don’t need FIDE for this project and we don’t need to call it a ‘world championship'”. Nevertheless, I was very optimistic about the arrival of an ambitious new person in the world of chess. I publicly praised Jan and mentioned in my interviews that a rising tide lifts all boats. I was looking forward to greater promotion of chess, more opportunities for players…

And then we had another conversation, and another, and another. For several months we discussed possible cooperation: implementation of FIDE ratings for Chess960, possible qualifying tournaments, challenges of organizing more free-style events in 2024 (“no one wants to invest money in it, and the only thing the Indians offered was a reduced price in hotels” (see this article – NDA)), calendar alignment in 2025. I frankly shared the information and gladly gave advice when asked.

There was never any question of calling it a “world championship”.

“We don’t need one. We’re not the FIDE that has to take care of everybody. We’ll have our Tour with the very best”. Fair enough – and there’s still plenty of room for cooperation.

But something has changed. We can only guess what caused it or who caused it.

That’s when Freestyle Chess decided to take advantage of the publicity and budget of the FIDE World Championship in Singapore.

Publications in the major media were organized on the eve of the championship, directly attacking the match and classical/regular chess.

They held the press conference in Singapore on the same day as the opening ceremony of the match, and suddenly, instead of having a simple freestyle/grand slam circuit, a “World Championship” appeared.

Since then, the situation has become increasingly bitter.

I’m still puzzled by this change of attitude.

Why, instead of peacefully managing his series, does he embark on a battle of this kind, aimed at dividing the chess community? Is it some kind of personal ambition? Or is it the realization that “world championships” sell better? Or an attempt to prove that this is THE world championship? If so, it won’t work.

FIDE has always been open to dialogue, but we have our obligations to the entire chess community, and we will fulfill them.

The processes here sound a little different from the way they are presented by the freestylers who, from their point of view, have come up against a reluctant International Federation. As an outsider, it is difficult to judge when the Buettner/Carlsen tandem first raised the question of the World Championship. In any case, Sutovsky’s version seems as plausible as that of the freestylers.

So far underestimated: the case from India

Indian sports channel Sports Today, which has 559,000 subscribers and is part of an Indian mediaoutlet, declares in the first video that February 03, 2025 is a decisive day and in the other video describes the risks for world champion Gukesh. However, the presenter considers FIDE to be at a disadvantage, highlighting the theme of money and quoting American streamer Nakamura. The Sports Today presenter talks of civil war.

Anand withdrew from the Weissenhaus tournament in January. The freestylers didn’t commented but replaced Anand with the young Uzbek Sindarov. The latent conflict between FIDE and the Freestyle organization could be the background. What’s more, as we saw above, Carlsen had made negative comments about Anand on the day of his reinstatement to the World Blitz Championship and about his conception of his role within FIDE. Today, major Indian media outlets are picking up the story and explaining the Indian point of view. Unsurprisingly, the subject is treated as much more than just a struggle for money. In this example, it’s not FIDE versus Freestyle, but Anand versus Carlsen. From an Indian perspective, the title of World Chess Champion is under attack. The Firstpost presenter refers to the Highlanders’ motto. There can only be one. And that one is currently an Indian.

Litigation campaign

As part of their upcoming litigation campaign, the freestylers had repeatedly briefed journalists and other influencers in advance. This is not unusual in the context of publicly prepared litigation. In this kind of campaign, the aim is to attract public opinion to one’s side and make one’s own case as comprehensively as possible. One of the aims of this campaign, for example, was to make the interested public believe that FIDE was only interested in money. Dvorkovich had already challenged this idea.

Another attempt was to publicly cast doubt on the chances of success of any legal action. In an article published in the FAZ on January 28, behind a paywall, Stefan Löffler recalls previous similar disputes:

In 2022, the chess.com platform changed an advertised world championship to the “Global Chess Championship”. But FIDE tolerates unofficial world championships in several chess variants, as do the amateur world championships organized by the German company Amateur Chess.

According to Löffler, a law firm specializing in sports rights works for Buettner. Löffler sums up his sports law research as follows:

Case law seems to confirm Buettner’s view. The German Wrestling Federation had to lift suspensions in an independent league of active wrestlers. In two rulings handed down at the end of 2023, the European Court of Justice showed how UEFA, FIFA and the International Skating Federation (ISU) were abusing their dominant position. The law firm Quinn EmanuelBuettner’s law firm, can look back on a successful track record in professional sports. In 2022, he dropped PGA Tour suspensions against golfers taking part in the Saudi-funded LIV Tour.

FAZ January 28, 2025: “What lies behind the dispute over the World Chess Championship“.

Löffler does not, however, develop further the interesting aspect of a possible line of compromise: the ACO, the Amateur Chess Organisation, calls its tournaments the “ACO World Championships”. A similar solution might have avoided the escalation of the dispute. The title of the event would then be “Freestyle World Championship” and the reference to chess would have disappeared from the organization’s name. The freestylers, however, wish to give their tournament another name: “Freestyle Chess World Championship” (FCWC), and this is what they have written into their rules.

Another case in point: in 2022, a brief dispute caused chess.com to back down. By analogy, the tournament could also be called the “Freestyle Global Chess Championship”. But maybe someone didn’t like that, as Sutovsky speculates in one of his many tweets?

One day before the announced showdown on February 03, 2025, Tarjei J. Svensena journalist in the pay of chess.comannounced that the matter had probably been settled and that Freestyle had prevailed. Once again, this rumour proves to be a falsehood. targeted misinformation or too early announcement of internal success on the part of freestylers.

FIDE’s response

FIDE seems to react to Svensen’s premature information and announces in the morning that no agreement has been reached once again. A full statement is announced for later in the evening. Here’s what it says:

FIDE and Freestyle Chess Tour: no agreement on world championship recognition

Despite intensive negotiations, the FIDE Council reports that there is currently no agreement concerning the Freestyle Tour. This is due to the fact that the other party does not recognize FIDE’s status as the sole regulator of world chess championships and its power to award a world championship title. A full FIDE statement on this issue has been announced for the same day at 7pm.

FIDE President Arkadij Dvorkovich

Dvorkovich briefly explains that he will not sign an agreement with the freestyle organization. He is referring to personal attacks on himself and his team. This would go against his upbringing and values.

Answer even before the declaration

Things are getting dirtier and dirtier. Before FIDE releases its statement, there’s yet another open letter from freestylers. Buettner quotes without context from a private Whatsapp conversation about trying to reach an agreement with Dvorkovich, whom he advises to resign due to a lack of leadership. According to Buettner, his word cannot be trusted. It sounds like two people talking past each other. In the rest of the text, Buettner explains how he assesses the course of discussions and considers Dvorkovich an unreliable negotiating partner. This is the third time the same inextricable situation has arisen. At the players’ request, the freestylers have reportedly asked for an extension of the deadline to February 15. This would allow the players to concentrate on the Weissenhaus tournament and possibly consult lawyers. According to Buettner, several aspects of the arrangements have already been agreed. Appropriate communication and respect for FIDE are at the top of the list. Further down the list is a reference to sponsoring a FIDE-selected tournament to the tune of $300,000. As well as the possibility of half the participants taking part in a qualifying tournament.

But freestylers finally crack! Despite the arrogance with which they maintain that the law is clearly on their side, they fear for their tournament, which is due to start on Friday in Weissenhaus. Buettner ends with gave in. On February 03, it was decided to renounce the title of world champion… for the time being, for ten months. De factoBuettner thus acknowledges a partial defeat, even if he sells it as a rescue action for destabilized players.

Note: when the Official Rules were consulted on 03 February 2025 at 17:49 German time, they still contained the rules for the “Freestyle Chess World Championship”. This should soon change, however, although Buettner refers to his own website and this still represents a significant contradiction. Finally, Buettner once again mentions a forthcoming dispute, and will now call in his lawyers, as further negotiations would be pointless.

UPDATE (04.02.2025): In the meantime, the rules mention the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour. That’s enough for FIDE.

FIDE press release of February 03 with update of February 04

In recent days, FIDE has been engaged in extensive discussions with the Freestyle Chess Tour regarding the potential recognition of their event as a world championship. Despite our willingness to collaborate – in particular by offering a waiver to participants in the competition scheduled for 2025, waiving entry fees for the 2025 edition and calling for an end to unfounded accusations against FIDE and against classical chess – no agreement has been reached.

The “Freestyle Chess Tour” has chosen not to recognize FIDE’s existing authority over the World Champion title and has decided to remain a privately organized tournament, featuring mainly hand-picked elite players, rather than an open and transparent qualification process.

A true world championship must be inclusive, with transparent qualification channels that follow FIDE rules and regulations. – which are established with the consensus of the world chess community – as shown by the FIDE World Championship cycle. Without these principles, the integrity of the title is threatened.

In light of the above, players wishing to participate in the Freestyle Chess Tour 2025 event are required to sign the waiver note by 18:00 CET, February 04, 2025, in order to remain eligible for the official FIDE World Championship cycle. We emphasize that this document does not impose any new requirements on players but provides them with a one-time exception to their existing contractual obligations to FIDE.

However, if the “Freestyle Chess Tour” withdraws the “World Championship” title from its event, these restrictions will not apply.

FIDE remains open to collaboration, but we stand firm in our commitment to protect the integrity and history of the World Championship and the chess community as a whole.

UPDATE: Today, February 04, the organizers of the “Freestyle Chess Tour” have removed the reference to the title “World Championship” from its rules entirely. As a result of this rule change, players wishing to participate in the 2025 Freestyle Chess Tour are no longer required to sign the waiver.

In the FIDE statement, some points sound different than they do for freestylers. Two points are worth highlighting: The freestylers did not want to recognize FIDE. From FIDE’s point of view, the event was designed against the classic world championship, FIDE’s greatest asset.

Carlsen attacks Dvorkovich directly

The new norm in world chess seems to be to publicize internal discussions without any real context. This must undermine the opponent’s credibility. Carlsen wants to prove a breach of his word, but these clues can also be seen as Dvorkovich keeping his promise not to penalize any player in 2025 for taking part in the reestyle tournament. During the discussion, he had explicitly stated that an agreement was not yet certain. The freestylers seem to assume that Dvorkovich has misinformed the FIDE committee.

“I don’t know any compromises. If I want to do something, it has to be perfect. I don’t care what it costs. If it’s not perfect, I don’t do it,” says Jan Henric Buettner, the driving force behind the Freestyle Chess events. Quoted in a article-portrait on Buettner by TJ Svensen of 29.01.25.

UPDATE

On February 04, 2025, this clip from TAKE TAKE TAKE was released:

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