NEW DELHI: New Delhi is likely to host the FIDE Chess World Cup 2025 from October 31 to November 27, marking the tournament’s return to Indian soil after nearly 23 years.
India last hosted the FIDE World Cup in 2002 in Hyderabad, where chess legend Viswanathan Anand clinched the title.
TimesofIndia.com understands that New Delhi is favoured over other cities to host this prestigious event.
“First, FIDE issues a circular, followed by government approval regarding which city will host it. Since it’s the World Cup, the most likely choice is the capital, Delhi,” an AICF official told TimesofIndia.com.
“For all world tournaments, the government’s first preference is always Delhi. The venue, once decided, remains fixed. We cannot relocate the players, and they have no issues traveling to Delhi,” the official added.
“Except for the Olympiad, we have hosted all major tournaments in Delhi. The Olympiad required a larger capacity, making it difficult to book accommodations and manage transportation. That’s why we moved it to Tamil Nadu,” the source explained, recalling how India hosted the Chess Olympiad 2022, with 180 countries participating.
Before the men’s event in India, FIDE will host the Women’s World Cup separately, scheduled to take place from July 5 to July 19 in Batumi, Georgia.
Furthermore, TimesofIndia.com can confirm that the 5th leg of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series will be held in Maharashtra, India, from April 13 to 24 this year.
While Delhi is set to host the biggest chess event of the year, it is likely to lose the hosting rights for the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour.
As reported by TimesofIndia.com last January, event organisers were considering moving the tournament out of Delhi due to a lack of investor interest.
The situation still remains the same, with TimesofIndia.com now understanding that an alternative venue in Europe is being explored by Freestyle Chess.
Following Vincent Keymer’s victory in the German leg, the tour will proceed to Paris (April 8-15), New York (July 17-24), and then — what was originally planned for New Delhi (September 17-24) — before concluding in Cape Town (December 5-12).
