Chess Legends Will Be Playing Speed Rounds on Wall Street — Here’s How to Get Tickets

Looking for something to fill that stretch of time between Christmas and New Year’s Eve? We’ve got an idea that’s far more captivating than your Netflix queue: A world-class chess tournament happening on Wall Street. 

One of the world’s most prestigious chess tournaments, the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships, is coming to Lower Manhattan at the end of December. Magnus Carlesen, the world’s top-rated player and reigning World Champion in both the Rapid and Blitz, will be participating, along with the Women’s World Champion in classical chess, Ju Wenjun. Other notable participants include current U.S. champion Fabiano Caruana, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Carissa Yip and Tan Zhongyi.

The tournament will take place December 26 through December 31. The schedule is as follows: The World Rapid Championships will be held from December 26 through 28, with 13 rounds in the Open section and 11 rounds in the Women’s section. Each player has a time limit of 15 minutes, with players receiving an additional increment of 10 seconds per move. 

On December 29, the Wall Street Gambit Сhess and Finance Conference is scheduled for the entirety of the day. Conference attendees will have the chance to show off their own chess skills against players including Carlsen, hear keynote speeches from notable figures in both chess and finance and enjoy a networking cocktail hour. 

On December 30, players compete in the first round of the World Blitz Championship, with 13 rounds in the Open section and 11 rounds in the Women’s section. Blitz is even faster than Rapid, with time limits of three minutes per player, with players receiving an additional two seconds added to the clock per move.

Last but not least, the tournament will conclude on December 31 with the Knockout rounds of the World Blitz Championship: the quarterfinals, semifinals and final. 

Open events and the Wall Street Gambit will take places at Cipriani Wall Street (55 Wall St.). Women’s events will take place at 48 Wall St. Spectator tickets for the tournament are available for $66 to $1500, depending on the tier and number of events. 

photo: Liudmila Chernetska / iStock