The Chess News Podcast

Peter Doggers
  • 5.0 (4)
  • SPORTS NEWS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Your weekly update on the latest chess news

Episodes

  1. 12/31/2025

    FIDE World Rapid & Blitz, Global Chess League, Kramnik Sues FIDE

    In this episode of The Chess News Podcast I discuss the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships, the Global Chess League, and more. It was the last week of the year and so we had the traditional World Rapid and Blitz, the favorite event of the year for many chess fans. It took place in Doha, Qatar and Magnus Carlsen took both titles once again. Alexandra Goryachkina won the women's rapid event and Bibisara Assaubayeva the blitz. The episode also covers the last two days of the Global Chess League, won by the Alpine SG Pipers. They beat the team that had dominated the round-robin stage and the winners of both 2023 and 2024, the Triveni Continental Kings. In other news, there’s another update to the news of two weeks ago that the FIDE General Assembly voted in favor of lifting sactions on Russia and Belarus and allowing teams from those countries back into official FIDE events. The Ukraine Chess Federation has now decided to challenge this decision at the Sports Court of Arbitration (CAS).  Related to this is an interview that Ruslan Ponomariov gave to the Spanish newspaper El Mundo this week. Ponomariov was also of the opinion that Russians shouldn’t be allowed back into tournaments.  Speaking of former world champions, there was a bit of news about Garry Kasparov, who has been put on a wanted list for arrest in absentia by a Russian court. The court followed an indictment against Kasparov on charges of justifying terrorism and planning a coup. The 13th world champion has been placed on an international wanted list. I further speak about the Sunway Sitges Chess Festival, the reopening of London's Simpson’s-in-the-Strand, the passing of Jonathan Hawkins and Vladimir Kramnik filing a lawsuit against the International Chess Federation before a Swiss civil court. SOURCES World Rapid https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aN0r6h5nrhw World Blitz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrS1rWDIdEQ  GCL, Last day round-robin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQJjS7Z13BQ  GCL, finals https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsTFcudXBhY Ukrainian Chess Federation statement https://www.facebook.com/UkrainianChessFederation/posts/pfbid028vUrPMc4cK7UM16qQFqQHn9FYZeBze75AabMmJ6kj12C3FTNq8sHw8jAVkQnziuZl  Ponomariov interview https://www.elmundo.es/deportes/mas-deporte/2025/12/22/6949809be4d4d869378b458f.html  Simpsons https://en.chessbase.com/post/chess-tradition-returns-to-simpson-s  Hawkins obituary https://www.chess.com/news/view/jonathan-hawkins-obituary Kramnik lawsuit https://en.chessbase.com/post/kramnik-files-lawsuit-against-fide Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    13 min

  2. 12/22/2025

    Global Chess League, Faustino Oro’s 2nd GM norm, FIDE Updates

    Welcome to week 11 [not 12, as I said] of the Chess News Podcast where I discuss the Global Chess League, Faustino Oro’s second GM norm, FIDE updates, and more. The biggest event underway is the Global Chess League, taking place in Mumbai, India. It is the third season of this rapid chess event among teams, a joint venture between FIDE and  sponsor Tech Mahindra. At the time of recording this podcast, 9 of the 10 rounds in the round-robin stage have been played and the winner of 2023 and 2024, Triveni Continental Kings, has a commanding lead of 21 points, which means the team has already qualified for the final.  Then, 2.5 months after scoring his first Grandmaster norm, the Argentinean prodigy Faustino Oro has now secured his second. The 12-year-old chess player finished in a tie for third place at the Szmetan-Giardelli Masters 2025 in Buenos Aires, scoring an undefeated 5.5/9 with seven draws and two wins. That was good for a 2608 performance rating, enough for a GM norm in a field that included players such as Aryan Tari, the winner of the tournament, Ivan Cheparinov, who came second, but also the legendary Alexei Shirov, who tied for third with Oro together with Diego Flores, the Argentinean Champion. Last week I mentioned the disturbing news that FIDE had approved the lifting of sanctions on Russia and Belarus at an online General Assembly held on Sunday the 14th. On Wednesday, The English Chess Federation (ECF) issued a statement, condemning both the procedure and the outcome. Meanwhile, the President of the Norwegian Chess Federation, IM Lasse Ostebo Lovik, has told Chess.com that his federation is considering legal action, which includes a complaint to the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS).  SOURCES GCL Day 5 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6aUBi02Er4 GCL Day 9 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qM6G-nM66lE Caruana-Firouzja by ChessBase India https://x.com/ChessbaseIndia/status/2001996122899018058 Gashimov Memorial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyzJwQQ7Wycx Tarjei Svensen’s report on FIDE https://www.chess.com/news/view/fide-approves-lifting-sanctions-on-russia-belarus Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    11 min

  3. 12/15/2025

    Carlsen Wins Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, Aronian Victorious In South Africa; FIDE General Assembly Controversy

    Welcome to week 10 of The Chess News Podcast where I discuss the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, the FIDE General Assembly, and more. The 2025 Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour came to an end on Thursday and it was Magnus Carlsen, co-founder of Freestyle Chess, who won the Tour after coming second in the final leg in Grootbos, South Africa. Carlsen lost the final to Levon Aronian, who had also won the previous Grand Slam in July in Las Vegas. In an online meeting on Sunday, taking place on Zoom, FIDE organized its General Assembly and one decision was particularly important. As it turned out, a majority of the chess delegates went against IOC recommendations and voted in a secret ballot to allow Russian and Belarus teams back in official events.  Just last Thursday, the IOC had recommended that individual youth athletes could be allowed in official competitions again, also playing for teams and under their national flags, but that other recommendations were upheld, meaning that the IOC continues to recommend banning Russia and Belarus for adult competitions. But the FIDE Council went against the IOC this time, put it to vote, and got a majority. In other news, FIDE announced that Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu officially qualified for the Candidates, having clinched the 2025 FIDE Circuit.  Then, 14-year-old Turkish chess Grandmaster Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus became the youngest player ever to enter into world top 50 after narrowly beating Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in a 6-game match.  There was also news on the Total Chess Tour, the new initiative by FIDE and Norway Chess. On Tuesday, a press release provided insight into the qualification paths for the new tour. Also this week there is news about chess and film. A new documentary called Queen of Chess, about Judit Polgar, is coming out soon. This is great news in itself, but even more special is that it has been selected for the Sundance Film Festival, which is America’s most prestigious independent film festival  Then, on X, Hikaru Nakamura has announced that he and his wife WGM Atousa Pourkashiyan are now parents. SOURCES Freestyle broadcasts: https://www.youtube.com/@freestyle_chess/streams FIDE General Assembly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIbTF1YAxqY Praggnanandhaa message: https://x.com/rpraggnachess/status/1998365715083251762 Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    12 min

  4. 12/08/2025

    Awesome Abdusattorov in London, Underwater Freestyle Fun

    Welcome to Week 9 of The Chess News Podcast, where I talk about the London Chess Classic, chess played underwater, and more. We're wrapping up the London Chess Classic, where Nodirbek Abdudattorov won the Elite tournament and scored 6 wins in a row between rounds 2 and 7. Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu tied for first in the Open and further cemented his lead in the FIDE Circuit. A remarkable event was held on Thursday in Cape Town, as part of several side events anticipating the upcoming Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals in South Africa. Hans Niemann became the Diving Chess Cape Town 2025 Champion after beating Fabiano Caruana in the final of an underwater chess event held at the Silo Hotel in Cape Town. In what was the first-ever under water Freestyle competition, the players made their moves on a small chess set placed 110 centimeters deep, on the bottom of the Silo Hotel’s beautiful rooftop pool. Each time a player moved and came out of the water to catch some air, the opponent had to take a dive instantly and make their move. Other news items covered are the Jerusalem Masters, the Argentine Championship, the launch of the Pia Cramling Cup, Casto Abundo passing, and the film War is Over!. SOURCES London Chess Classic Round 6 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I82E2Ur-Xfg London Chess Classic Round 7 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOGvmx5EhaU London Chess Classic Round 8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikviuV_p9Tc Diving Chess: ChessBase India https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyYFD0B2SFk War is Over! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W68-XaFepOg Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    9 min

  5. 12/01/2025

    FIDE World Cup, London Chess Classic, Google DeepMind Film

    Welcome to week 8 of the Chess News Podcast, where I discuss the FIDE World Cup, the London Chess Classic, Google DeepMind's The Thinking Game, and more. SOURCES Sindarov wins! https://x.com/chess24com/status/1993642610368675899 Sindarov press conference https://x.com/FIDE_chess/status/1993691470864187515 London Chess Classic broadcasts https://www.youtube.com/@ChessinSchools/streams Ivanchuk’s loss on time  https://twitter.com/ECUonline/status/1994835598658752617  The Thinking Game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d95J8yzvjbQ  Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    12 min

  6. 11/24/2025

    FIDE World Cup, Speed Chess Quarterfinals, Women’s World Teams Controversy

    This podcast discusses the quarterfinals and semifinals of the FIDE World Cup, three matches from the Chess.com Speed Chess quarterfinals, the Women’s World Teams controversy, the announced participants of the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz, the Tata Steel Chess Challengers, and the Daniel Naroditsky Memorial and Fellowship Fund. SOURCES  FIDE World Cup QF, game 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-p1nr9kgwH4 FIDE World Cup QF, tiebreak https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWBccUDXIc4 FIDE World Cup SF, tiebreak https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwbWJnWFAsg Wei Yi interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO-4DTVW4Ks SCC Nakamura-So https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r16CG8FhWog SCC Firouzja-Nepomniachtchi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KmPpUqiWQo SCC Lazavik-Niemann https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6GkVzx4e7E Naroditsky Memorial Chess Fund https://www.chess.com/news/view/naroditsky-memorial-chess-fund-announced  Ukrainian protest https://www.chess.com/news/view/ukraine-files-complaint-vs-russian-team-fide-womens-world-teams Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    17 min

  7. 11/17/2025

    FIDE World Cup, Candidates announced, Carlsen vs. Caruana in the SCC

    Welcome to week 6 of The Chess News Podcast, where I discuss the FIDE World Cup, the announcement of the FIDE Candidates, Magnus Carlsen beating Fabiano Caruana in the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship, the announcement of the Grand Chess Tour, Faustino Oro's match with Sandro Mareco and CBS' 60 covering chessboxing. Sources: FIDE World Cup Round 4, Game 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnfskWjHYik&t=7615s FIDE World Cup Round 5, Game 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1VioqLOI-g FIDE World Cup Round 5, Tiebreaks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1Jh05JCq14 Sam Shankland interview https://youtu.be/PTRXDSWaWkA Carlsen-Caruana SCC https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIXTj2I1SOU 60 minutes on Chess boxing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmOFhZbgXIc Thanks for listening and please spread the word that this podcast exists! :-) You might also be interested in my other podcast Masters and Matches which I co-host with Arne Moll. https://peterdoggers.com/masters-and-matches-podcast/ Also, check out my book The Chess Revolution at https://peterdoggers.com/book/

    13 min
  • 7 Episodes

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5
out of 5
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About

Your weekly update on the latest chess news

Information

  • Creator
    Peter Doggers
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    7
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Chess News Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Chess News Podcast

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