Chess at the Esports World Cup 2025 (EWC) delivered big time as the semifinal clash between two Goliaths — Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura — saw a lot of tense action, drama, high-quality games and antics as the chess world was privy to entertainment. The best-of-six semifinal saw World No. 1 Carlsen pitted against World No. 2 Nakamura in a nail-biting duel that went down to the wire.
With the live audience heavily favouring the American Nakamura, who represents Saudi-based Esports organisation, team Falcon, Carlsen grew visibly frustrated and even went on to raise a finger to his lips, looking to silence the crowd.
Carlsen silences the crowd
Magnus silences the audience — supporting the local Team Falcons — as he knows he’s winning Game 4 to regain the lead vs. Hikaru! #EsportsWorldCup pic.twitter.com/Ffi27aGgZd
— chess24 (@chess24com) July 31, 2025
Carlsen wasted no time getting into the lead after beating Nakamura with white pieces. In return, the American hit hard to get an almost winning position against the Norwegian but ended up drawing the game under severe time pressure. This is when Carlsen does a fist pump, understanding the value of his hold.
But Nakamura wasn’t done. He retaliated in Game 3 with the black pieces, levelling the score 1.5-1.5 after being fueled by roaring support from the live crowd, who made their allegiance clear. However, their cheers only seemed to ignite Carlsen’s resolve. The moment he gained a winning advantage, he fired back with a silencing gesture, hushing the audience.
Crowd behind Nakamura
Nakamura plays the KID, traps Carlsen’s queen and inflicts the 1st loss on Magnus of the #EsportsWorldCup to level the scores at 1.5-1.5 with 3 games to go! https://t.co/RYvzSBtX4f pic.twitter.com/ACiQjliRkg
— chess24 (@chess24com) July 31, 2025
After playing out a draw in the fifth game to retain a 3.0-2.0 lead in the match-up, Nakamura delivered in the must-win game and beat Carlsen on demand, taking the semifinals to the Armageddon. The tiebreaker Armageddon went in Carlsen’s favour as he qualified for the finals, where he will be up against Nakamura’s teammate and another crowd favourite, Team Falcons’ Alireza Firouzja.
Hikaru will take on India’s Arjun Erigais in the third-place playoff.
“It pissed me off when they cheered when Hikaru was winning!” Carlsen admitted after the match. What was Hikaru’s reaction to his loss? “Hopefully tomorrow Alireza can kick Magnus Carlsen’s a**!”
