US grandmaster and World No. 2 Hikaru Nakamura has called chess “just the worst” and slammed FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky for arguing with IM Levy Rozman instead of engaging him in a productive discussion about suggestions for over-the-board (OTB) chess.
Nakamura wrote on X, “Chess is just the worst. Instead of engaging the largest chess creator @gothamchess in a discussion about suggestions he has for otb chess or what he enjoyed about EWC or anything productive, the head of FIDE decides to get into a pissing match. We cannot get out of our own way.”
Chess is just the worst. Instead of engaging the largest chess creator @gothamchess in a discussion about suggestions he has for otb chess or what he enjoyed about EWC or anything productive, the head of FIDE decides to get into a pissing match. We cannot get out of our own way.
— Hikaru Nakamura (@GMHikaru) August 21, 2025
Rozman, who runs the GothamChess YouTube channel, praised Chess.com’s initiative of adding new qualification pathways for the chess event at the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2026. He also said, “Imagine OTB chess pulled together something similar?,” a comment which Sutovsky took upon himself to answer by defending the OTB events conducted by FIDE.
Nakamura’s response came after Sutovsky’s reply to Rozman.
What did GothamChess say?
Rozman wrote on X, “This is a VERY exciting announcement for chess. For once we have a cohesive schedule where certain events “flow” into others, ultimately culminating with a worthy championship once again in Summer 2026. Imagine OTB chess pulled together something similar? Video coming soon.”
What was FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky’s response?
Replying to Rozman, Sutovsky commented on his post on X: “Sorry, Levy. OTB does have it. And also with much higher prizes, if you sum up Grand Swiss, World Cup, Candidates and the Match. And with millions in expenses related to hosting these. Btw, figures you aired at Levitov yesterday indicate you know very little about FIDE events – or you deliberately belittle them. Calling you out on that one. Ready to debate at any platform. Alternatively you may wish to take back your statements about FIDE increasing prizes just by 3%. It is rather about 30% on average. Notwithstanding, it is great to see EWC back with a lot of money for players, tho having TT as a qualifier would require quite a massive upgrade in everything related to the fair-play.”
Sorry, Levy. OTB does have it. And also with much higher prizes, if you sum up Grand Swiss, World Cup, Candidates and the Match. And with millions in expenses related to hosting these.
Btw, figures you aired at Levitov yesterday indicate you know very little about FIDE events -…
— Emilchess (@EmilSutovsky) August 21, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
What are Chess.com’s new pathways to qualify for the Esports World Cup 2026?
Unlike the previous season, where the Champions Chess Tour (CCT) was the primary qualifier and offered 12 of the 16 spots for EWC 2025, the next season will see three major Chess.com competitions combine to form the qualifying circuit for EWC 2026.
These three events are the Titled Tuesday, the Speed Chess Championship (SCC), and the Chess.com Global Championship (CGC). Together, they will form the new Champions Chess Tour (CCT), which will qualify 12 players for the 2026 Esports World Cup.
Story continues below this ad
Through Titled Tuesday, players will earn points for their best eight performances across three Grand Prix “Splits.” The new season is set to begin with Split 1 on September 2. The Speed Chess Championship will commence in October 2025 and conclude in February 2026.
