Editing Chess (section)

==History==
{{Main|History of chess}}

===Origins===
[[File:King Khosrow sits before the chessboard, while his vizir and the envoy of Qannuj are playing chess. Shahnameh, 10th century CE.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Sasanian Empire]] King [[Khosrow I]] sits on his throne before the chessboard, while his vizir and the Indian envoy Deva Sharma, probably sent by the [[Maukhari]] King [[Śarvavarman]] of [[Kannauj]], are playing chess. ''[[Shahnama]]'', 10th century AD.<ref name="ME">{{cite book |last1=Eder |first1=Manfred A. J. |title=South Asian Archaeology 2007 Proceedings of the 19th Meeting of the European Association of South Asian Archaeology in Ravenna, Italy, July 2007, Volume II |date=2010 |publisher=Archaeopress Archaeology |isbn=978-1-4073-0674-2 |page=69 |url=http://history.chess.free.fr/papers/Eder%202007-2.pdf |access-date=21 November 2021 |archive-date=20 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120194215/http://history.chess.free.fr/papers/Eder%202007-2.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bakker |first1=Hans T. |author-link=Hans T. Bakker |title=The Huns in Central and South Asia. How Two Centuries of War against Nomadic Invaders from the Steps are Concluded by a Game of Chess between the Kings of India and Iran |date=2017 |url=https://www.academia.edu/34156496 |access-date=21 November 2021 |archive-date=20 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320115332/https://www.academia.edu/34156496 |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
Texts referring to the origins of chess date from the beginning of the seventh century. Three are written in ''Pahlavi'' ([[Middle Persian]])<ref>{{Cite book|title=La novella degli scacchi e della tavola reale|last=Panaino|first=Antonio|publisher=Mimesis|year=1999|isbn=88-87231-26-5|location=Milano}}</ref> and one, the ''[[Harshacharita]]'', is in [[Sanskrit]].<ref>Andreas Bock-Raming, The Gaming Board in Indian Chess and Related Board Games: a terminological investigation, Board Games Studies 2, 1999</ref> One of these texts, the ''Chatrang-namak'', represents one of the earliest written accounts of chess. The narrator [[Bozorgmehr]] explains that ''Chatrang'', "Chess" in Pahlavi, was introduced to Persia by '[[Sharvavarman|Dewasarm]], a great ruler of India' during the reign of [[Khosrow I]]:<ref>{{harvp|Warner|2000|p=381}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Dewasarm has fashioned this ''[[chatrang]]'' after the likeness of a battle, and in its likeness are two supreme rulers after the likeness of Kings (shah), with the essentials of rooks (rukh) to right and to left, with Counsellor (farzin) in the likeness of a commander of the champions, with the Elephant (pil) in the likeness of the commander of the rearguard, with Horse (asp) in the likeness of the commander of the cavalry, with the Footsoldier (piyadak) in the likeness of so many infantry in the vanguard of the battle.|Translation by Murray, 1913.{{sfn|Mark|2007|p=148}}}}

[[File:A treatise on chess 2.jpg|thumb|An illustration from a Persian manuscript "A treatise on chess". The Ambassadors from India present the Chatrang to Khosrow I Anushirwan, "Immortal Soul", King of Persia, 14th century AD.|left]]
The oldest known chess manual was in Arabic and dates to about 840, written by [[al-Adli ar-Rumi]] (800–870), a renowned Arab chess player, titled ''Kitab ash-shatranj'' (The Book of Chess). This is a lost manuscript, but is referenced in later works.<ref>{{harvp|Murray|1985|pp=169–174}}</ref> Here also, al-Adli attributes the origins of Persian chess to India, along with the eighth-century collection of fables [[Kalīla wa-Dimna]].<ref name="Elephants and Kings">{{harvp|Trautmann|2015|p=117}}</ref> By the 20th century, a substantial consensus{{sfn|Mark|2007|p=138}}<ref>{{harvp|Fine|2015|p=3}}</ref> developed regarding chess's origins in northwest [[India]] in the early seventh century.<ref>{{harvp|Murray|1985|pp=26–27, 51–52}}</ref> More recently, this consensus has been the subject of further scrutiny.<ref>{{cite web|date=2012-08-08|title=A critical review of: "The Beginnings of Chess"|url=http://history.chess.free.fr/mark2007.htm|publisher=Jean-Louis Cazaux|access-date=4 May 2021|archive-date=8 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808032318/http://history.chess.free.fr/mark2007.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

The early forms of chess in India were known as ''[[chaturanga|chaturaṅga]]'' ({{Langx|sa|चतुरङ्ग}}), literally "four divisions" [of the military]&nbsp;– [[infantry]], [[cavalry]], [[war elephant|elephants]], and [[chariot]]ry – represented by pieces that would later evolve into the modern pawn, knight, bishop, and rook, respectively. Chaturanga was played on an 8×8 uncheckered board, called ''[[Ashtapada|ashtāpada]]''.<ref>{{cite web|date=2005-07-25|title=Ashtapada|url=http://history.chess.free.fr/ashtapada.htm|access-date=2013-07-16|publisher=Jean-Louis Cazaux|archive-date=25 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170725185540/http://history.chess.free.fr/ashtapada.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Thence it spread eastward and westward along the [[Silk Road]]. The earliest evidence of chess is found in nearby [[Sasanian Persia]] around 600 A.D., where the game came to be known by the name ''[[chatrang]]'' ({{langx|fa|چترنگ}}).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Eiland |first=Murray |date=2013 |title=Some Problems of Islamic Heraldry |url=https://www.academia.edu/8013404 |journal=The Armiger's News |volume=35 |issue=2 |pages=1–5 |via=academia.edu |access-date=27 December 2022 |archive-date=3 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230203011606/https://www.academia.edu/8013404 |url-status=live }}</ref> Chatrang was taken up by the [[Muslim world]] after the [[Islamic conquest of Persia]] (633–51), where it was then named ''[[shatranj]]'' ({{langx|ar|شطرنج}}; {{langx|fa|شترنج}}), with the pieces largely retaining their Persian names. In Spanish, "shatranj" was rendered as ''ajedrez'' ("al-shatranj"), in [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] as ''xadrez'', and in [[Greek language|Greek]] as ζατρίκιον (''zatrikion'', which comes directly from the Persian ''chatrang''),<ref>{{harvp|Murray|1985|p=163}}</ref> but in the rest of Europe it was replaced by versions of the Persian ''shāh'' ("king"), from which the English words "check" and "chess" descend.{{refn|At that time the Spanish word would have been written ''axedrez''. The Spanish "x" was pronounced as English "sh", as the Portuguese "x" still is today. The spelling of ''ajedrez'' changed after [[Spanish orthography#History|Spanish lost the "sh" sound]].|group=note}} The word "[[checkmate]]" is derived from the Persian ''shāh māt'' ("the king is dead").<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=checkmate |title=Online Etymology Dictionary |access-date=2 May 2020 |last=Harper |first=Douglas |author2=Dan McCormack |archive-date=2 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102052251/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=checkmate |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:KnightsTemplarPlayingChess1283.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Knights Templar]] playing chess, {{lang|es|[[Libro de los juegos]]}}, 1283]]

[[Xiangqi]] is the form of chess best known in China. The eastern migration of chess, into China and Southeast Asia, has even less documentation than its migration west, making it largely conjectured. The word ''xiàngqí'' ({{lang|zh|象棋}}) was used in China to refer to a game from 569 A.D. at the latest, but it has not been proven that this game was directly related to chess.<ref>Peter Banaschak, Facts on the origin of Chinese chess (Xiangqi), 4th Symposium of the Initiative Gruppe Königstein, Wiesbaden, August 1997</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Understanding the Elephant, Part 1: History of Xiangqi|last=Png Hau Cheng|first=Jim|year=2016|isbn=978-957-43-3998-3|publisher=Jim Png Hau Cheng|location=New Taipei City}}</ref>
The first reference to Chinese chess appears in a book entitled ''Xuánguaì Lù'' ({{lang|zh|玄怪錄}}; "Record of the Mysterious and Strange"), dating to about 800. A minority view holds that Western chess arose from xiàngqí or one of its predecessors.<ref>{{harvp|Li|1998}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Banaschak |first=Peter |title=A story well told is not necessarily true: a critical assessment of David H. Li's ''The Genealogy of Chess'' |url=http://www.banaschak.net/schach/ligenealogyofchess.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511071131/http://www.banaschak.net/schach/ligenealogyofchess.htm |archive-date=11 May 2013}}</ref> Chess historians Jean-Louis Cazaux and Rick Knowlton contend that xiangqi's intrinsic characteristics make it easier to construct an evolutionary path from China to India/Persia than the opposite direction.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A World of Chess, Its Development and Variations through Centuries and Civilisations|last1=Cazaux|first1=Jean-Louis|publisher=McFarland|year=2017|isbn=9-780786-494279|pages=334–353 (The origins of chess, approaching the question from several angles)|last2=Knowlton|first2=Rick}}</ref>

The oldest archaeological chess artifacts – ivory pieces – were excavated in ancient [[Afrasiyab (Samarkand)|Afrasiab]], today's [[Samarkand]], in [[Uzbekistan]], Central Asia, and date to about 760, with some of them possibly being older. Remarkably, almost all findings of the oldest pieces come from along the Silk Road, from the former regions of the Tarim Basin (today's Xinjiang in China), [[Transoxiana]], [[Sogdiana]], [[Bactria]], [[Gandhara]], to Iran on one end and to India through [[Kashmir]] on the other.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Chess and other games pieces from Islamic Lands|last=Freeman Fahid|first=Deborah|publisher=Thames & Hudson|year=2018|isbn=978-0-500-97092-8|location=London}}</ref>

[[File:Chess pieces from Samarkand 700s.jpg|thumb|These are some of the seven Early Islamic ivory chess pieces excavated in [[Afrasiyab (Samarkand)|Samarkand]] in 1977. They date to the 700s and are among the oldest in the world.<ref>{{harvp|Brunning|Yu-Ping|O'Connell|Williams|2024|pp=151–152}}</ref>  The ivory came from India.]]

The game reached Western Europe and Russia via at least three routes, the earliest being in the ninth century. By the year 1000, it had spread throughout both the [[Al Andalus|Muslim Iberia]] and [[Latin Christianity|Latin Europe]].<ref>{{harvp|Hooper|Whyld|1992||pp=173–175}}</ref> A Latin poem called ''[[Versus de scachis]]'' ("Verses on Chess") dated to the late 10th century, has been preserved at [[Einsiedeln Abbey]] in Switzerland.

===1200–1700: Origins of the modern game===
The game of chess was then played and known in all European countries. A famous 13th-century Spanish manuscript covering chess, [[backgammon]], and [[dice]] is known as the {{lang|es|[[Libro de los juegos]]}}, which is the earliest [[Europe]]an treatise on chess as well as being the oldest document on European [[tables games]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ilko |first1=Krisztina |title=Chess and Race in the Global Middle Ages |journal=Speculum |date=2024 |volume=99 |issue=2 |pages=505–519 |doi=10.1086/729294|issn = 0038-7134}}</ref> The rules were fundamentally similar to those of the Arabic [[shatranj]]. The differences were mostly in the use of a checkered board instead of a plain monochrome board used by Arabs and the habit of allowing some or all pawns to make an initial double step. In some regions, the queen, which had replaced the [[Wazir (chess)|wazir]], or the king could also make an initial two-square leap under some conditions.<ref>{{harvp|Murray|1985|pp=457–459}}</ref> 
[[File:Lucena110.png|thumb|right|A tactical puzzle from [[Luis Ramírez de Lucena|Lucena's]] 1497 book]]

Around 1200, the rules of shatranj started to be modified in Europe, culminating, several major changes later, in the emergence of modern chess practically as it is known today.<ref>{{harvp|Murray|1985|p=777}}</ref> A major change was the modern piece movement rules, which began to appear in intellectual circles in [[Valencia]], Spain, around 1475,{{refn|The allegorical poem [[Scachs d'amor]], the first to describe a modern game, is probably from 1475.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1259987 |title=Francesco di Castellvi vs. Narciso Vinyoles (1475) "Old in Chess" |website=[[Chessgames.com]] |access-date=13 November 2021 |archive-date=28 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128214712/https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1259987|url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Negri|first=Sergio Ernesto|date=2020-03-16|title=Scachs d'amor: The poem that first portrayed the modern rules of chess|url=https://en.chessbase.com/post/scachs-damor-poem-part-1|url-status=live|access-date=2021-11-09|website=ChessBase|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200329222835/https://en.chessbase.com/post/scachs-damor-poem-part-1 |archive-date=29 March 2020 }}</ref>|group=note}} which established the foundations and brought it very close to current chess. These new rules then were quickly adopted in Italy and Southern France before diffusing into the rest of Europe.<ref>{{harvp|Davidson|1949|pp=13–17}}</ref><ref name="nauiua">{{cite web |author=Calvo, Ricardo |url=http://history.chess.free.fr/papers/Calvo%201998.pdf |title=Valencia Spain: The Cradle of European Chess |date=1998 |access-date=3 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130113355/http://history.chess.free.fr/papers/Calvo%201998.pdf |archive-date=30 January 2016 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Pawns gained the ability to advance two squares on their first move, while bishops and queens acquired their modern movement powers. The [[Queen (chess)|queen]] replaced the earlier [[Vizier#Influence on chess|vizier]] chess piece toward the end of the 10th&nbsp;century and by the 15th&nbsp;century had become the most powerful piece;<ref>{{harvp|Yalom|2004}}</ref> in light of that, modern chess was often referred to at the time as "Queen's Chess" or "Mad Queen Chess".<ref>{{harvp|Weissberger|2004|pp=152ff}}</ref> Castling, derived from the "king's leap", usually in combination with a pawn or rook move to bring the king to safety, was introduced. These new rules quickly spread throughout Western Europe.

Writings about [[chess theory]] began to appear in the late 15th&nbsp;century. An [[Göttingen manuscript|anonymous treatise on chess of 1490]] with the first part containing some openings and the second 30 endgames is deposited in the library of the [[University of Göttingen]].<ref name="Alex-1989">{{Cite book |last=Alex |first=Crisovan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nww4MQAACAAJ |title=1889-1989 : 100 Jahre Schweizerischer Schachverband: 100 ans de fdration suisse des checs |date=1989 |publisher=Verlag Zrcher |pages=54 |language=it |access-date=25 January 2023 |archive-date=3 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230203011446/https://books.google.com/books?id=nww4MQAACAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> The book ''El Libro dels jochs partitis dels schachs en nombre de 100'' was written by [[Francesc Vicent]] in [[Segorbe]] in 1495, but no copy of this work has survived.<ref name="Alex-1989" /> The ''Repetición de Amores y Arte de Ajedrez'' (''Repetition of Love and the Art of Playing Chess'') by [[Spanish people|Spanish]] churchman [[Luis Ramírez de Lucena]] was published in [[Salamanca]] in 1497.<ref name="nauiua"/> Lucena and later masters like Portuguese [[Pedro Damiano]], Italians [[Giovanni Leonardo Di Bona]], [[Giulio Cesare Polerio]] and [[Gioachino Greco]], and Spanish bishop [[Ruy López de Segura]] developed elements of [[#Opening|opening theory]] and started to analyze simple [[#Endgame|endgames]].

===1700–1873: Romantic era===
[[File:immortal Game, 1851.gif|thumb|right|240px|The "[[Immortal Game]]", Anderssen vs. Kieseritzky, 1851]]
In the 18th century, the center of European chess life moved from Southern Europe to mainland France.{{citation needed|date=February 2025}} The two most important French masters were [[François-André Danican Philidor]], a musician by profession, who discovered the importance of pawns for chess strategy, and later [[Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais]], who won a famous series of matches against Irish master [[Alexander McDonnell (chess player)|Alexander McDonnell]] in 1834.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=31596 |title=Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais |website=[[Chessgames.com]] |access-date=26 November 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081229231938/http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=31596 |archive-date=29 December 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Centers of chess activity in this period were [[coffee house]]s in major European cities like ''[[Café de la Régence]]'' in Paris and ''[[Simpson's-in-the-Strand|Simpson's Divan]]'' in London.<ref>{{harvp|Metzner|1998}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bird|first1=Henry Edward |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/4902 |title=Chess History and Reminiscences |access-date=26 November 2008 |publisher=Gutenberg |date=January 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090924125500/http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/4902 |edition=10|archive-date=24 September 2009 |url-status=live |author-link=Henry Edward Bird}}</ref>

At the same time, the [[Romanticism|Romantic]] intellectual movement had had a far-reaching impact on chess, with aesthetics and tactical beauty being held in higher regard than objective soundness and strategic planning. As a result, virtually all games began with the [[Open Game]], and it was considered unsportsmanlike to decline gambits that invited tactical play such as the [[King's Gambit]] and the [[Evans Gambit]].<ref name="Shenk, 2007">{{cite book|author=David Shenk|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780385510103|title=The Immortal Game: A History of Chess|publisher=Knopf Doubleday|year=2007|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780385510103/page/99 99]|isbn=9780385510103|url-access=registration}}</ref> This chess philosophy is known as [[Romantic chess]], and its sharp, tactical style of play was predominant until the late 19th century.<ref>{{harvp|Landsberger|1992}}</ref>

[[Stalemate#History of the stalemate rule|The rules concerning stalemate]] were finalized in the early 19th&nbsp;century. Also in the 19th&nbsp;century, the convention that White moves first was established (formerly either White or Black could move first). Finally, the rules around castling and en passant captures were standardized&nbsp;– variations in these rules persisted in Italy until the late 19th&nbsp;century. The resulting standard game is sometimes referred to as ''Western chess''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3492 |title=XiangQi – an alternate to Western Chess |publisher=ChessBase.com |author=René Gralla |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604145052/http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3492 |archive-date=4 June 2011 |df=dmy-all |date=19 November 2006}}</ref> or ''international chess'',<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessvariants.org/oriental.dir/thaikramnik.html |date=January 2, 2005|title=Kramnik plays Makruk Thai |first1=René|last1=Gralla |access-date=12 December 2010 |website=[[The Chess Variant Pages]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606155706/http://www.chessvariants.org/oriental.dir/thaikramnik.html |archive-date=6 June 2011 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> particularly in Asia where other games of the chess family such as [[xiangqi]] are prevalent. Since the 19th&nbsp;century, the only rule changes, such as the establishment of the correct procedure for claiming a draw by repetition, have been technical in nature.

[[File:Jean Henri Marlet Das berühmte Schachspiel zwischen Howard Staunton und Pierre Charles Fourrier Saint-Amant 1843.jpg|thumbnail|right|A depiction of the chess match between [[Howard Staunton]] and [[Pierre Charles Fournier de Saint-Amant|Pierre Saint-Amant]], on 16 December 1843]]
As the 19th century progressed, chess organization developed quickly. Many [[chess club]]s, chess books, and chess journals appeared. There were correspondence matches between cities; for example, the London Chess Club played against the [[Edinburgh]] Chess Club in 1824.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=80740 |title=London Chess Club |website=[[Chessgames.com]] |access-date=26 November 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081225144954/http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=80740 |archive-date=25 December 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> [[Chess problems]] became a regular part of 19th-century newspapers; [[Bernhard Horwitz]], [[Josef Kling]], and [[Samuel Loyd]] composed some of the most influential problems. In 1843, [[Tassilo von Heydebrand und der Lasa|von der Lasa]] published his and [[Paul Rudolf von Bilguer|Bilguer's]] ''[[Handbuch des Schachspiels]]'' (''Handbook of Chess''), the first comprehensive manual of chess theory.

The first modern chess tournament was organized by [[Howard Staunton]], a leading English chess player, and was [[London 1851 chess tournament|held in London in 1851]]. It was won by the German [[Adolf Anderssen]], who was hailed as the leading chess master. His brilliant, energetic attacking style was [[Romantic chess|typical for the time]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://worldchessnetwork.com/English/chessHistory/salute/matchesTournaments/london1851.php |title=London, 1851 |last=Parr|first=Larry |publisher=World Chess Network |access-date=26 November 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031004035110/http://worldchessnetwork.com/English/chessHistory/salute/matchesTournaments/london1851.php |archive-date=4 October 2003  |author-link=Larry Parr (editor)}}</ref><ref>{{harvp|Hartston|1985|p=36}}</ref> Sparkling games like Anderssen's [[Immortal Game]] and [[Evergreen Game]] or [[Paul Morphy|Morphy's]] "[[Morphy versus the Duke of Brunswick and Count Isouard|Opera Game]]" were regarded as the highest possible summit of the art of chess.<ref>{{harvp|Burgess|Nunn|Emms|2004|p=14}}</ref>

Deeper insight into the nature of chess came with the American [[Paul Morphy]], an extraordinary [[chess prodigy]]. Morphy won against all important competitors (except Staunton, who refused to play), including Anderssen, during his short chess career between 1857 and 1863. Morphy's success stemmed from a combination of brilliant attacks and sound strategy; he intuitively knew how to prepare attacks.<ref>{{harvp|Shibut|2004}}</ref>

===1873–1945: Birth of a sport===
[[File:Wilhelm Steinitz2.jpg|thumb|right|upright 0.8|[[Wilhelm Steinitz]], the first official [[World Chess Champion]], from 1886 to 1894]]
{{Chess diagram small
|tright
|Rubinstein vs. Nimzowitsch, 1925
|rd|nd|  |qd|kd|  |  |rd  
|pd|bd|  |pd|pd|pd|bd|pd
|  |  |  |  |  |nd|pd|  
|  |  |pd|  |  |  |  |  
|  |  |pl|  |  |  |  |  
|  |pl|  |  |  |nl|pl|  
|pl|bl|  |  |pl|pl|bl|pl
|rl|nl|  |ql|kl|  |  |rl  
|Nimzowitsch later commented: "Each side castles now with a clear conscience, for not even the most hypermodern pair of masters can produce more than four fianchettoed Bishops!"<ref>{{harvp|Nimzowitsch|1925|p=140}}</ref>
}}
[[Prague]]-born [[Wilhelm Steinitz]] laid the foundations for a scientific approach to the game, the art of breaking a position down into components<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003a|p=6}}</ref> and preparing correct plans.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003a|p=11}}</ref> In addition to his theoretical achievements, Steinitz founded an important tradition: his triumph over the leading German master [[Johannes Zukertort]] in 1886 is regarded as the first official [[World Chess Championship]]. This win marked a stylistic transition at the highest levels of chess from an attacking, tactical style predominant in the Romantic era to a more positional, strategic style introduced to the chess world by Steinitz. Steinitz lost his crown in 1894 to a much younger player, the German mathematician [[Emanuel Lasker]], who maintained this title for 27 years, the longest tenure of any world champion.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003a|p=117}}</ref>

After the end of the 19th century, the number of master tournaments and matches held annually quickly grew. The first [[Chess Olympiad|Olympiad]] was held in Paris in 1924, and [[FIDE]] was founded initially for the purpose of organizing that event. In 1927, the [[Women's World Chess Championship]] was established; the first to hold the title was Czech-English master [[Vera Menchik]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=13277 |title=Vera Menchik |website=[[Chessgames.com]] |access-date=26 November 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081026031307/http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=13277 |archive-date=26 October 2008}}</ref>

A prodigy from Cuba, [[José Raúl Capablanca]], known for his skill in endgames, won the World Championship from Lasker in 1921. Capablanca was undefeated in tournament play for eight years, from 1916 to 1924. His successor (1927) was the Russian-French [[Alexander Alekhine]], a strong attacking player who died as the world champion in 1946. Alekhine briefly lost the title to Dutch player [[Max Euwe]] in 1935 and regained it two years later.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003b|p=9}}</ref>

In the [[interwar period]], chess was revolutionized by the new theoretical school of so-called [[Hypermodernism (chess)|hypermodernists]] like [[Aron Nimzowitsch]] and [[Richard Réti]]. They advocated controlling the {{chessgloss|center}} of the board with distant pieces rather than with pawns, thus inviting opponents to occupy the center with pawns, which become objects of attack.<ref>{{harvp|Hooper|Whyld|1992|p=178}}</ref> Among the innovations popularized by hypermodernists was the [[fianchetto]]: the development of bishops away from, rather than towards, the center, onto the b- and g-files.

===1945–1990: Post-World War II era===
[[File:Mikhail Botvinnik 1962.jpg|thumb|left|[[Mikhail Botvinnik]], the first post-war World Champion]]
After the death of Alekhine, a new World Champion was sought. FIDE, which has controlled the title since then, ran a tournament of elite players. The winner of the [[World Chess Championship 1948|1948 tournament]] was Russian [[Mikhail Botvinnik]]. In 1950, FIDE established a system of titles, conferring the title of [[Grandmaster (chess)|Grandmaster]] on 27 players. (Some sources state that, in 1914, the title of chess Grandmaster was first formally conferred by Tsar [[Nicholas II of Russia]] to Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, [[Siegbert Tarrasch|Tarrasch]], and [[Frank Marshall (chess player)|Marshall]], but this is a disputed claim.{{refn|This is stated in ''The Encyclopaedia of Chess'' (1970, p. 223) by [[Anne Sunnucks]], but is disputed by [[Edward Winter (chess historian)]] in his [http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/winter38.html Chess Notes 5144 and 5152].|group=note}})

Botvinnik started an era of [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] dominance in the chess world, which mainly through the Soviet government's politically inspired efforts to demonstrate intellectual superiority over the West<ref>{{Cite thesis|title=Storming Fortresses: A Political History Of Chess In The Soviet Union, 1917-1948|url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0s71f0cw|publisher=UC Santa Cruz|date=2013|language=en|first=Michael Andrew|last=Hudson|access-date=19 April 2021|archive-date=25 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425094201/https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0s71f0cw|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The match of the century|url=https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/the-match-of-the-century|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Adam Smith Institute|date=September 2019 |language=en-GB|archive-date=8 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210908234912/https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/the-match-of-the-century|url-status=live}}</ref> stood almost uninterrupted for more than a half-century. Until the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]], there was only one non-Soviet champion, American [[Bobby Fischer]] (champion 1972–1975).<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003b|pp=7–8}}</ref> Botvinnik also revolutionized [[Chess theory#Opening theory|opening theory]]. Previously, Black strove for equality, attempting to neutralize White's [[first-move advantage in chess|first-move advantage]]. As Black, Botvinnik strove for the initiative from the beginning.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003b|p=7}}</ref> In the previous informal system of World Championships, the current champion decided which challenger he would play for the title and the challenger was forced to seek sponsors for the match. FIDE set up a new system of qualifying tournaments and matches. The world's strongest players were seeded into [[Interzonal]] tournaments, where they were joined by players who had qualified from Zonal tournaments. The leading finishers in these Interzonals would go through the "[[Candidates Tournament|Candidates]]" stage, which was initially a tournament, and later a series of knockout matches. The winner of the Candidates would then play the reigning champion for the title. A champion defeated in a match had a right to play a rematch a year later. This system operated on a three-year cycle. Botvinnik participated in championship matches over a period of fifteen years. He won the world championship tournament in 1948 and retained the title in tied matches in 1951 and 1954. In 1957, he lost to [[Vasily Smyslov]], but regained the title in a rematch in 1958. In 1960, he lost the title to the 23-year-old Latvian prodigy [[Mikhail Tal]], an accomplished [[Chess tactics|tactician]] and attacking player who is widely regarded as one of the most creative players ever,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Pete (Pete)|title=The 12 Most Interesting Chess Players Ever|url=https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-12-most-interesting-chess-players-ever|access-date=2021-04-19|website=Chess.com|date=28 April 2018 |language=en-US|archive-date=19 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419131201/https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-12-most-interesting-chess-players-ever|url-status=live}}</ref> hence his nickname "the magician from Riga". Botvinnik again regained the title in a rematch in 1961.

[[File:Bobby Fischer 1960 in Leipzig.jpg|thumb|left|[[Bobby Fischer]], World Champion from 1972 to 1975]]
Following the 1961 event, FIDE abolished the automatic right of a deposed champion to a rematch, and the next champion, Armenian [[Tigran Petrosian]], a player renowned for his defensive and positional skills, held the title for two cycles, 1963–1969. His successor, [[Boris Spassky]] from Russia (champion 1969–1972), won games in both positional and sharp tactical style.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003b|p=8}}; {{harvp|Kasparov|2004a|pp=5–6}}</ref> The next championship, the so-called [[World Chess Championship 1972|Match of the Century]], saw the first non-Soviet challenger since World War II, American [[Bobby Fischer]]. Fischer defeated his opponents in the [[Candidates Tournament|Candidates]] matches by unheard-of margins, and convincingly defeated Spassky for the world championship. The match was followed closely by news media of the day, leading to a surge in popularity for chess; it also held significant political importance at the height of the [[Cold War]], with the match being seen by both sides as a [[Microcosm–macrocosm analogy|microcosm]] of the conflict between East and West.<ref>{{Cite magazine|title=How chess became a pawn in Russia's political war games|language=en-GB|magazine=Wired UK|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/world-chess-championship-2018-london-carlsen-vs-caruana|access-date=2021-09-08|issn=1357-0978|archive-date=8 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210908234912/https://www.wired.co.uk/article/world-chess-championship-2018-london-carlsen-vs-caruana|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1975, however, Fischer refused to defend his title against Soviet [[Anatoly Karpov]] when he was unable to reach agreement on conditions with FIDE, and Karpov obtained the title by default.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2004b|pp=5–6}}</ref> Fischer modernized many aspects of chess, especially by extensively preparing openings.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2003a|p=8}}</ref>

Karpov defended his title twice against [[Viktor Korchnoi]] and dominated the 1970s and early 1980s with a string of tournament successes.<ref>{{harvp|Kasparov|2004b|pp=5–6}}; {{harvp|Kasparov|2006|pp=5–6}}</ref> In the [[1984 World Chess Championship]], Karpov faced his toughest challenge to date, the young [[Garry Kasparov]] from [[Baku]], [[Soviet Azerbaijan]]. The match was aborted in controversial circumstances after 5 months and 48 games with Karpov leading by 5 wins to 3, but evidently exhausted; many commentators believed Kasparov, who had won the last two games, would have won the match had it continued. Kasparov won the [[1985 World Chess Championship|1985 rematch]]. Kasparov and Karpov contested three further closely fought matches in 1986, 1987 and 1990, Kasparov winning them all.<ref>{{harvp|Keene|1993|p=16}}</ref> Kasparov became the dominant figure of world chess from the mid-1980s until his retirement from competition in 2005.

====Beginnings of chess technology====
Chess-playing computer programs (later known as [[chess engines]]) began to appear in the 1960s. In 1970, the first major computer chess tournament, the [[North American Computer Chess Championship]], was held, followed in 1974 by the first [[World Computer Chess Championship]]. In the late 1970s, dedicated home chess computers such as Fidelity Electronics' ''[[Chess Challenger]]'' became commercially available, as well as software to run on home computers. The overall standard of computer chess was low, however, until the 1990s.

The first [[endgame tablebases]], which provided [[perfect play]] for relatively simple endgames such as king and rook versus king and bishop, appeared in the late 1970s. This set a precedent to the complete six- and seven-piece tablebases that became available in the 2000s and 2010s respectively.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-03-16|title=Endgame tablebases: A short history|url=https://en.chessbase.com/post/endgame-tablebases-a-short-history|access-date=2021-04-19|website=ChessBase News|language=en|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420013702/https://en.chessbase.com/post/endgame-tablebases-a-short-history|url-status=live}}</ref>

The first commercial [[chess database]], a collection of chess games searchable by move and position, was introduced by the German company [[ChessBase]] in 1987.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-05-19 |title=ChessBase is 25 |url=https://en.chessbase.com/post/chebase-is-25-everything-25-off-in-our-shop |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=Chess News |language=en}}</ref> Databases containing millions of chess games have since had a profound effect on opening theory and other areas of chess research.

Digital [[chess clocks]] were invented in 1973, though they did not become commonplace until the 1990s. Digital clocks allow for time controls involving [[Time control#Increment and delay methods|increments and delays]].

===1990–present: Rise of computers and online chess===

====Technology====
The [[Internet]] enabled [[online chess]] as a new medium of playing, with [[chess servers]] allowing users to play other people from different parts of the world in real time. The first such server, known as [[Internet Chess Server]] (ICS), was developed at the University of Utah in 1992. ICS formed the basis for the first commercial chess server, the [[Internet Chess Club]], which was launched in 1995, and for other early chess servers such as [[Free Internet Chess Server]] (FICS). Since then, many other platforms have appeared, and online chess began to rival over-the-board chess in popularity.<ref>{{cite web|last1=McClain|first1=Dylan Loeb|date=14 March 2010|title=Wherever You Are, a Game Is Just a Point and Click Away|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/14/crosswords/chess/14chess.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/14/crosswords/chess/14chess.html |archive-date=2022-01-01 |url-access=limited|access-date=10 January 2021|website=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Internet helps to speed up growth of chess around the world | website=Financial Times | url=https://www.ft.com/content/d61a112a-524a-11e5-b029-b9d50a74fd14 | date=October 7, 2015 | last1=Thomson | first1=Adam | access-date=April 22, 2021 | archive-date=20 April 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420013702/https://www.ft.com/content/d61a112a-524a-11e5-b029-b9d50a74fd14 | url-status=live }}</ref> During the 2020 [[COVID-19 pandemic]], the isolation ensuing from [[quarantine]]s imposed in many places around the world, combined with the success of the popular [[Netflix]] show ''[[The Queen's Gambit (miniseries)|The Queen's Gambit]]'' and other factors such as the popularity of online tournaments (notably [[PogChamps]]) and chess [[Twitch (service)|Twitch]] streamers, resulted in a surge of popularity not only for online chess, but for the game of chess in general; this phenomenon has been referred to in the media as the 2020 online chess boom.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-11-29|title='It's electrifying': chess world hails Queen's Gambit-fuelled boom|url=http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/nov/29/chess-world-hails-queens-gambit-fuelled-boom|access-date=2021-04-19|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=10 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310133353/https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/nov/29/chess-world-hails-queens-gambit-fuelled-boom|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Dottle|first=Rachael|title=The Chess Boom Goes Digital After 'The Queen's Gambit'|language=en|work=Bloomberg.com|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2020-chess-boom/|access-date=2021-04-19|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417174425/https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2020-chess-boom/|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Computer chess]] has also seen major advances. By the 1990s, chess engines could consistently defeat most amateurs, and in 1997 [[Deep Blue (chess computer)|Deep Blue]] defeated World Champion Garry Kasparov in [[Deep Blue versus Garry Kasparov|a six-game match]], starting an era of computer dominance at the highest level of chess. In the 2010s, engines significantly stronger than even the best human players became accessible for free on a number of [[Personal computer|PC]] and [[Mobile phone|mobile]] platforms, and free engine analysis became a commonplace feature on internet chess servers. An adverse effect of the easy availability of engine analysis on hand-held devices and personal computers has been the rise of [[Chess cheating|computer cheating]], which has grown to be a major concern in both over-the-board and online chess.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Team (CHESScom)|first=Chess com|title=About Online Chess Cheating|url=https://www.chess.com/article/view/online-chess-cheating|access-date=2021-04-20|website=Chess.com|date=15 August 2020 |language=en-US|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420131449/https://www.chess.com/article/view/online-chess-cheating|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2017, [[AlphaZero]] – a [[Artificial neural network|neural network]] also capable of playing [[shogi]] and [[Go (game)|Go]] – was introduced. Since then, many chess engines based on neural network evaluation have been written, the best of which have surpassed the traditional "[[Brute-force search|brute-force]]" engines. AlphaZero also introduced many novel ideas and ways of playing the game, which affected the style of play at the top level.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Techmate: How AI rewrote the rules of chess|publisher=Financial Times|url=https://www.ft.com/content/ea707a24-f6b7-11e7-8715-e94187b3017e|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-13|date=12 January 2018|last1=Waters|first1=Richard|archive-date=17 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210317081158/https://www.ft.com/content/ea707a24-f6b7-11e7-8715-e94187b3017e}}</ref>

As [[endgame tablebases]] developed, they began to provide [[perfect play]] in endgame positions in which the [[Game theory|game-theoretical]] outcome was previously unknown, such as positions with king, queen and pawn against king and queen. In 1991, Lewis Stiller published a tablebase for select six-piece endgames,<ref>{{cite journal|author=L. B. Stiller|year=1991|title=Some Results from a Massively Parallel Retrograde Analysis|journal=ICCA Journal|volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=129–134 |doi=10.3233/ICG-1991-14304}}</ref><ref>See also: {{cite journal|title=Exploiting symmetry on parallel architectures|author=L. B. Stiller|journal=Icga Journal |year=1995|volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=102–113|doi=10.3233/icg-1995-18206}}</ref> and by 2005, following the publication of [[Eugene Nalimov|Nalimov]] tablebases, all six-piece endgame positions were solved. In 2012, Lomonosov tablebases were published which solved all seven-piece endgame positions.<ref>{{cite web|author=Convekta Ltd.|title=Lomonosov Endgame Tablebases|url=http://chessok.com/?page_id=27966|access-date=20 April 2021|archive-date=1 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501134618/http://chessok.com/?page_id=27966|url-status=live}}</ref> Use of tablebases enhances the performance of chess engines by providing definitive results in some branches of analysis.

Technological progress made in the 1990s and the 21st century has influenced the way that chess is studied at all levels, as well as the state of chess as a [[spectator sport]].

Previously, preparation at the professional level required an extensive chess library and several subscriptions to publications such as ''[[Chess Informant]]'' to keep up with opening developments and study opponents' games. Today, preparation at the professional level involves the use of databases containing millions of games, and engines to analyze different opening variations and prepare novelties.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Campitelli|first=Guillermo|title=How computers changed chess|url=http://theconversation.com/how-computers-changed-chess-20772|access-date=2021-04-24|website=The Conversation|date=29 November 2013 |language=en|archive-date=25 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425081211/https://theconversation.com/how-computers-changed-chess-20772|url-status=live}}</ref> A number of online learning resources are also available for players of all levels, such as online courses, tactics trainers, and video lessons.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Big Techday 9 - TNG Technology Consulting - Modern Chess Preparation – The Role of Computers in professional Chess|url=http://media.techcast.cloud/bigtechday9/barcelona-1615/?q=barcelona-1615|access-date=2021-04-27|website=media.techcast.cloud|archive-date=27 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210427010714/http://media.techcast.cloud/bigtechday9/barcelona-1615/?q=barcelona-1615|url-status=live}}</ref>

Since the late 1990s, it has been possible to follow major international chess events online, the players' moves being relayed in real time. Sensory boards have been developed to enable automatic transmission of moves. Chess players will frequently run engines while watching these games, allowing them to quickly identify mistakes by the players and spot tactical opportunities. While in the past the moves have been relayed live, today chess organizers will often impose a half-hour delay as an anti-cheating measure. In the mid-to-late 2010s – and especially following the 2020 online boom – it became commonplace for [[Super Grandmaster|supergrandmasters]], such as [[Hikaru Nakamura]] and [[Magnus Carlsen]], to [[livestream]] chess content on platforms such as [[Twitch (service)|Twitch]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Brookwell|first=Ilya|title=Chess is taking over the online video game world – and both are changing from this unlikely pairing|url=http://theconversation.com/chess-is-taking-over-the-online-video-game-world-and-both-are-changing-from-this-unlikely-pairing-143790|access-date=2021-04-26|website=The Conversation|date=2 September 2020 |language=en|archive-date=27 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210427004246/https://theconversation.com/chess-is-taking-over-the-online-video-game-world-and-both-are-changing-from-this-unlikely-pairing-143790|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-02-23|title=The Big Story|url=https://www.protocol.com/newsletters/gaming/chess-twitch-streaming?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1?rebelltitem=1|access-date=2021-04-20|website=Protocol — The people, power and politics of tech|language=en|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420132231/https://www.protocol.com/newsletters/gaming/chess-twitch-streaming?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1?rebelltitem=1|url-status=live}}</ref> Also following the boom, online chess started being viewed as an [[esport]], with esport teams signing chess players for the first time in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Statt|first=Nick|date=2020-08-27|title=Esports giant TSM signs Hikaru Nakamura, its first pro chess player|url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/27/21404322/hikaru-nakamura-chess-tsm-esports-sign-contract-player-twitch|access-date=2021-04-20|website=The Verge|language=en|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420130729/https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/27/21404322/hikaru-nakamura-chess-tsm-esports-sign-contract-player-twitch|url-status=live}}</ref> The number of esport teams signing chess players rose considerably in 2025, after chess was added to [[Saudi Arabia]]'s [[Esports World Cup]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Magnus Carlsen trolls FIDE in Team Liquid announcement video: 'Do I have to change?' |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/chess/magnus-carlsen-trolls-fide-in-team-liquid-announcement-video-do-i-have-to-change-9837163/ |access-date=15 February 2025 |work=The Indian Express |date=15 February 2025 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Svensen |first1=Tarjei J. |title=Ding Liren Signs With Chinese Esports Team, Reveals Return To Chess |url=https://www.chess.com/news/view/ding-liren-returns-to-chess-signs-for-lgd-gaming-less-busy-year |access-date=13 February 2025 |work=Chess.com |date=13 February 2025}}</ref>

====Growth====
Organized chess even for young children has become common. FIDE holds world championships for age levels down to 8 years old. The largest tournaments, in number of players, are those held for children.<ref>{{citation | title=SuperNationals VI is the Largest Rated Tourney Ever | date=May 13, 2017 | url=https://new.uschess.org/news/supernationals-vi-largest-rated-tourney-ever/ | website=Chess Life Online | access-date=May 8, 2018 | archive-date=29 April 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429023117/https://new.uschess.org/news/supernationals-vi-largest-rated-tourney-ever | url-status=live }}</ref>

The number of [[Grandmaster (chess)|grandmasters]] and other chess professionals has also grown in the modern era. Kenneth Regan and Guy Haworth conducted research involving comparison of move choices by players of different levels and from different periods with the analysis of strong chess engines. They concluded that the increase in the number of grandmasters and higher Elo ratings of the top players reflect an actual increase in the average standard of play, rather than "rating inflation" or "title inflation".<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Regan|first1=Kenneth|last2=Haworth|first2=Guy|date=2011-08-04|title=Intrinsic Chess Ratings|url=https://ojs.aaai.org/index.php/AAAI/article/view/7951|journal=Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence|language=en|volume=25|issue=1|pages=834–839 |doi=10.1609/aaai.v25i1.7951 |s2cid=15489049 |issn=2374-3468|access-date=20 April 2021|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420130735/https://ojs.aaai.org/index.php/AAAI/article/view/7951|url-status=live|doi-access=free}}</ref>

====Professional chess====
[[File:Gukesh in 2024 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|[[Gukesh Dommaraju]] of India, current World Champion]]
[[File:MagnusCarlsen24.jpg|thumb|right|[[Magnus Carlsen]] of Norway, top 1 FIDE ranked player since July 2011]]
In 1993, Garry Kasparov and [[Nigel Short]] broke ties with FIDE to organize their own match for the World Championship and formed a competing [[Professional Chess Association]] (PCA). From then until 2006, there were two simultaneous World Championships and respective World Champions: the PCA or "classical" champions extending the Steinitzian tradition in which the current champion plays a challenger in a series of games, and the other following FIDE's new format of many players competing in a large knockout tournament to determine the champion. Kasparov lost his PCA title in [[Classical World Chess Championship 2000|2000]] to [[Vladimir Kramnik]] of Russia.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/europe/11/02/chess.kramnik/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060128031243/http://archives.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/europe/11/02/chess.kramnik/index.html |archive-date=28 January 2006 |title=Kramnik beats Kasparov, 2000 |access-date=4 September 2010 |publisher=CNN |date=2 November 2000}}</ref> Due to the complicated state of world chess politics and difficulties obtaining commercial sponsorships, Kasparov was never able to challenge for the title again. Despite this, he continued to dominate in top level tournaments and remained the world's [[List of FIDE chess world number ones|highest rated player]] until his retirement from competitive chess in 2005.

The [[World Chess Championship 2006]], in which Kramnik beat the FIDE World Champion [[Veselin Topalov]], reunified the titles and made Kramnik the undisputed World Chess Champion.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=12295 |title=Vladimir Kramnik |website=[[Chessgames.com]] |access-date=26 November 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081222121703/http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=12295 |archive-date=22 December 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> In September 2007, he lost the title to [[Viswanathan Anand]] of India. Anand defended his title in the [[World Chess Championship 2008|revenge match of 2008]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Viswanathan Anand regains world chess title |date=30 September 2007 |work=Reuters |url=http://in.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idINIndia-29785520070930 |access-date=13 December 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071226102028/http://in.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idINIndia-29785520070930 |archive-date=26 December 2007 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> 2010 and 2012. [[Magnus Carlsen]] defeated Anand in [[World Chess Championship 2013|2013]], defending his title in [[World Chess Championship 2014|2014]], [[World Chess Championship 2016|2016]], [[World Chess Championship 2018|2018]], and [[World Chess Championship 2021|2021]], whereafter he announced that he would not defend his title a fifth time. The [[World Chess Championship 2023|2023 championship]] was played between the winner and runner-up of the [[Candidates Tournament 2022]]: [[Ian Nepomniachtchi]] of Russia and [[Ding Liren]] of China. Ding beat Nepomniachtchi, making him the world champion.<ref name="WCC2023" /> In [[World Chess Championship 2024|2024]], Indian [[Gukesh Dommaraju]] beat Ding.
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