The world of chess has recently experienced significant growth due to technological advances, new formats, and attractive figures like streamer Hikaru Nakamura or the world number one, Magnus Carlsen.

It was with the Norwegian that an incident occurred at the ongoing FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championship in New York. The first day of the competition didn’t go well for Carlsen, but the Norwegian was ready to fight. The problem arose where it was least expected. The judges didn’t like that Carlsen showed up for the second day wearing jeans. The Norwegian was fined and asked to dress appropriately. Magnus suggested that he be allowed to finish the day as he was, and he would dress properly the following day. After being refused, Magnus refused to comply, and the judges decided to disqualify him.

It’s important to understand a few things here: the FIDE dress code has long been a subject of criticism, and this isn’t the first bizarre incident. Secondly, there’s a long-standing history between FIDE and Carlsen. The Norwegian, who can be considered the greatest chess player of all time, advocates for more modern formats, while the federation remains very conservative.

The story is clearly far from over, as in an interview after the incident, Magnus dropped an f-bomb towards FIDE, and it’s unlikely that this will end here. It’s important to note that the federation no longer has much leverage. Magnus is a much more popular player and is arguably doing more for chess than FIDE.

This conflict could lead to unpredictable consequences — such as the eventual establishment of a cycle of commercial tournaments bypassing the federation. FIDE’s only remaining leverage is the World Championship matches, which Magnus isn’t interested in since he resigned from the title after ten years of undisputed global dominance.

If, for example, Hikaru Nakamura, who has also stated that he doesn’t care much about the title, joins him, we could see an interesting alternative movement with significant historical consequences. It will be funny if the chess revolution begins because of a pair of jeans.

Main image: x.com

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