Magnus Carlsen beat Fabiano Caruana 2.5-1.5 at Weissenhaus in February to claim the first official FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship.
Javokhir Sindarov won the Cyprus Candidates undefeated with a record 10/14 to challenge Gukesh; Vaishali Rameshbabu won the Women's Candidates.
FIDE's Chess & AI in Education Congress in Menorca (April 24-26) examined how artificial intelligence is reshaping chess teaching and learning.
FIDE set a provisional Nov 23-Dec 17 window for Gukesh vs Sindarov and opened host-city bidding, with India and Uzbekistan seen as frontrunners.
Vincent Keymer won the Grand Chess Tour's classical opener in Bucharest with 6/9, edging Caruana by half a point after beating Van Foreest.
Seeded 76th, 15-year-old Ukrainian Anastasiia Hnatyshyn scored 9/11 in Batumi to win the European Women's Championship and earn the WGM title.
Bibisara Assaubayeva sealed the Norway Chess Women 2026 title with a round to spare, finishing unbeaten on 16.5 points ahead of Zhu Jiner.
Praggnanandhaa won Norway Chess 2026 in Oslo with four straight classical wins, finishing on 18 points ahead of Wesley So; Carlsen was fourth.
Nihal Sarin beat three-time champion Firouzja 15.5-7.5 and 9.5-4.5, with a 15-game winning streak, to become the first Indian Bullet Chess Champion.
Carlsen dropped 18 points on the July 2026 FIDE list yet remains the world's only 2800+ player, over 30 points clear of Nakamura and Caruana.
Firouzja survived Abdusattorov's final-day comeback in Zagreb, winning the first Grand Chess Tour title ever decided by an Armageddon tiebreak.
Alireza Firouzja beat world champion Gukesh in 69 moves on July 17 to reach 2/2 and take a one-point lead at the Quantbox Chennai Grand Masters.
