Professional players have raised concerns that the upcoming Chess tournament in the 2026 Esports World Cup (EWC) clashes with another prominent series, the Grand Chess Tour.
EWC’s Last Chance Qualifier will take place from August 6th to 8th, and the main event will run from August 11th to 15th. However, the 2026 Grand Chess Tour has scheduled the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz event for August 2nd to 6th and the Sinquefield Cup for August 10th to 20th, 2026.
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The Grand Chess Tour is an international series considered by many players to be one of the most prestigious chess circuits, offering $2m (~£1.46m) in prize funds this year. The 2026 tour comprises of several tournaments from May 3rd to August 28th. such as the Super Raid & Blitz Poland and Super Chess Classic Romania.
Players earn Tour Points throughout the circuit to climb the global standings, with the top four players qualifying for the GCT Final at the Saint Louis Chess Club. As a result, the two tournaments held in the middle of EWC are vital for deciding which players will compete to be crowned this year’s champion.
The Chess tournament at EWC has also become one of the biggest events in the Chess esports ecosystem. The competition will feature some of the top players in the scene representing various organisations for a $1.5m (~£1.09m) prize pool.
Chess Players Speak Out
In light of this, several top Chess players in the competitive scene have signed an open letter calling out the organisers on the schedule clash.
The letter voices the concerns of players Levon Aronian, five-time U.S champion Fabiano Caruana, two-time world champion Alierza Firouzja, four-time Dutch champion Anish Giri, Vincent Keymer, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, and three-time French champion Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.
The post highlights that participation in both competitions is ‘effectively impossible’ due to the short time frame between events.
The statement said: “These are two of the most important tournaments on the calendar. A clash of this scale prevents many of the world’s best layers from participating in both competitions.
“Avoiding direct conflicts between flagship events is a basic principle in other professional sports, and Chess should strive for the same standard.”
Furthermore, the letter alleges that players and teams raised concerns with organisers of the EWC and Chess Grand Tour, though the schedules have since remained unchanged.
It has caused fans to debate online which event should be rescheduled. Some argue that the EWC is unable to change dates due to featuring multiple titles at the event, while others highlight that the Grand Chess Tour’s legacy should be respected as the older event.
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