Bengaluru: Twelve Freestyle Chess Players Club members, which includes reigning world champion from India, D Gukesh, have agreed to form an independent players association with a qualified legal team to represent their interests, Freestyle Chess said in a statement issued on Monday. This move comes in direct response to recent clashes with Fide, said the statement.
The Sunday evening meeting, following the first day of the quarterfinals, included all Freestyle Chess Grand Slam participants in Weissenhaus, Germany, remote members of the Freestyle Chess Players Club and Freestyle Chess organiser Jan Buettner. “They agreed to temporarily avoid using “world” to counter Fide’s unfounded claims of ownership over such word.”
“This was never our intention, as we have always called our events ‘G.O.A.T. Challenge’ or ‘Grand Slam,’” Buettner said. “It’s important to note that this decision was made by the players, not by Freestyle — and certainly not by Fide.” The title “Freestyle Chess Champion” will apply for the 2025 season. At the year’s end, organisers and players will review and discuss the 2026 tour, including the title at stake, said the statement.
The statement went on to say that last month, Fide “demanded that players sign a legally questionable document, setting an inconvenient deadline right after the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee,” where many were competing. The document required them to (i) acknowledge an alleged obligation not to compete in non-FIDE events crowning a World Champion or similar title and (ii) accept a ban from future Fide World Championship cycles if they violated this rule, it said.
“The players, some still teenagers, were notified by Fide’s Legal Director and were given no chance for legal counsel to review the demand. These repeated harassments are outrageous,” said Buettner. “We strongly oppose Fide’s coercive tactics, which pressure players to forgo their right to choose which events to play.”
“We were ready to take all necessary action to defend the freedom of the players,” Buettner added. But in Sunday’s meeting, players unanimously agreed to ignore Fide’s demands, refusing to be forced into choosing between exciting new events and future Fide participation.”
