Chess · Worth knowing

Wesley So and Fabiano Caruana are facing off in a US Championship playoff with notable head-to-head histories across different time controls. In classical chess, Caruana leads with 8 wins to 5 losses and 34 draws, while their rapid and blitz records are remarkably close, with So ahead 15-14 in rapid and Caruana narrowly leading 17-16 in blitz. Both players are experienced in playoff situations, having met multiple times in tiebreaks at recent high-level events including the 2025 Sinquefield Cup and Grand Chess Tour Finals, making this championship playoff highly competitive with no clear favorite entering the match.

Wesley So lost his one-point lead heading into the final round of the U.S. Championship after collapsing against GM Sam Sevian in a heavy-piece endgame, forcing a playoff with GM Fabiano Caruana, who won his final game against GM Awonder Liang with an interesting 6.Bf4 idea in the Tarrasch Defense that his second had shared at Wijk aan Zee. In the Women's section, 16-year-old WIM Rachael Li became the youngest first-time winner of the title, securing victory with a draw against IM Anna Zatonskih and gaining 50 rating points in the process.

After five rounds of the 2026 European Chess Club Cup, SuperChess Romania and Novy Bor Chess Club are tied for the lead in the Open section with perfect 10 match points, while CE Gambit Bonnevoie maintains sole leadership in the Women's section with five straight wins. In recent matches, Novy Bor defeated Alkaloid 4-2 with wins from GM Pentala Harikrishna and GM Anton David Guijarro, SuperChess Romania routed SK K Cero Invest Nitra 5.5-0.5 with GM Vasyl Ivanchuk drawing on the top board, and CE Gambit Bonnevoie edged Sirmium Sremska Mitrovica 2.5-1.5. The final two rounds will determine the tournament winners, with the 6th round pairings set for both sections.

The MOVE Cup, a new elite chess tournament, will take place in Barcelona from January 19-20, 2027, featuring the world's top grandmasters competing in rapid chess format. Magnus Carlsen has been announced as the first participant, with seven additional grandmasters to be revealed in coming weeks. The tournament features a 300,000 EUR prize fund matched by an equal charitable contribution to the MOVE Foundation, which supports chess growth, young talent, and research on chess and mental health. The rapid format is designed for both live spectators and online viewers, culminating in a knockout final followed by a trophy ceremony.