Champions Chess Tour 2025

Champions Chess Tour 2025

Details
Duration	16 February – 23 May 2025
Tournaments	2
Achievements (singles)
Most titles	Magnus Carlsen (2)
Prize money leader	Magnus Carlsen ($50,000)
Points leader	Magnus Carlsen (200)
← 2024 Esports World Cup →

The Champions Chess Tour (CCT) 2025 was a fast chess tournament circuit organized in 2025 by Chess.com. The tour started on 16 February 2025 and ended on 23 May 2025. It involved two online chess tournaments, featuring some of the world's top players who play for a prize money pool of US$ 300,000.

The top twelve players qualified for the Esports World Cup. ^[a]

Tour points and prize money

The total prize pool for each tournament was US$ 150,000 for each tournament, distributed as follows: ^[2]

Finish	Points	Prize
1st	100	$25,000
2nd	80	$20,000
3rd	65	$15,000
4th	50	$10,000
5th (x2)	40	$8,000
7th (x2)	30	$7,000
9th (x4)	20	$6,000
13th (x4)	10	$5,000
Match Play	5	-
Play-In (16th - 30th)	3	-
Play-In (31th - 40th)	2	-
Play-In (41th - 50th)	1	-

Tournament schedule and results

Champions Chess Tour tournaments

Tournament	Dates	Prize	Winner	Second (or finalist)	Third	Fourth
Chessable Masters [3]	February 16–22	$150,000	Magnus Carlsen	Hikaru Nakamura	Ian Nepomniachtchi	Jan-Krzysztof Duda
Chess.com Classic [4]	May 18–23		Magnus Carlsen	Maxime Vachier-Lagrave	Hikaru Nakamura	Nodirbek Abdusattorov

Standings

Prize money is shown in US dollars. The top twelve players qualified for the Esports World Cup.

Pos	Name	Chessable Masters	Chess.com Classic	Total Points	Prize Money
1	Magnus Carlsen	100	100	200	$50,000
2	Hikaru Nakamura	80	65	145	$35,000
3	Ian Nepomniachtchi	65	40	105	$23,000
4	Maxime Vachier-Lagrave	5	80	85	$20,000
5	Jan-Krzysztof Duda	50	10	60	$15,000
6	Arjun Erigaisi	40	20	60	$14,000
7	Nodirbek Abdusattorov	5	50	55	$10,000
8	Vladislav Artemiev	20	30	50	$13,000
9	Alireza Firouzja	40	3	43	$8,000
10	Vladimir Fedoseev	-	40	40	$8,000
11	Fabiano Caruana	20	20	40	$12,000
12	Wei Yi	20	20	40	$12,000
13	Levon Aronian	3	30	33	$7,000
14	Andrey Esipenko	30	2	32	$7,000
15	Yu Yangyi	30	1	31	$7,000
16	Ding Liren	-	20	20	$6,000
	Anish Giri	20	0	20	$6,000
18	Praggnanandhaa R	10	10	20	$10,000
19	Denis Lazavik	5	10	15	$5,000
20	Alexander Grischuk	10	3	13	$5,000
21	Sam Sevian	10	1	11	$5,000
22	Gukesh D	-	10	10	$5,000
	Wesley So	10	0	10	$5,000
24	Nihal Sarin	3	5	8	$0

Tournaments details

Chessable Masters

Play-offs

	Round 1					Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Final															Grand Final
	Winners Bracket
	Magnus Carlsen		3
	Andrey Esipenko		1
						Magnus Carlsen		2.5
						Yu Yangyi		0.5
	Wesley So		1.5
	Yu Yangyi		2.5
											Magnus Carlsen		2.5
											Arjun Erigaisi		2.5
	Arjun Erigaisi		2.5
	Vladislav Artemiev		1.5
						Arjun Erigaisi		3
						Wei Yi		0
	R Praggnanandhaa		0.5
	Wei Yi		2.5
																Magnus Carlsen		2.5
																Hikaru Nakamura		0.5
	Hikaru Nakamura		2.5
	Alexander Grischuk		0.5
						Hikaru Nakamura		3
						Ian Nepomniachtchi		0
	Ian Nepomniachtchi		3
	Jan-Krzysztof Duda		1
											Hikaru Nakamura		3
											Alireza Firouzja		2
	Fabiano Caruana		2.5
	Samuel Sevian		0.5
						Fabiano Caruana		2																							Magnus Carlsen		2.5
						Alireza Firouzja		3																							Hikaru Nakamura		1.5
	Alireza Firouzja		2.5
	Anish Giri		0.5
	Round 1					Round 2					Round 3					Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Final
	Losers Bracket					Fabiano Caruana		0
																Arjun Erigaisi		0
	Andrey Esipenko		2			Andrey Esipenko		2
											Andrey Esipenko		0.5			Ian Nepomniachtchi		2
	Wesley So		1
											Ian Nepomniachtchi		1.5													Hikaru Nakamura		1.5
						Ian Nepomniachtchi		2
																					Ian Nepomniachtchi		1.5			Ian Nepomniachtchi		1.5
	Vladislav Artemiev		2			Vladislav Artemiev		1
																					Jan-Krzysztof Duda		0.5
	R Praggnanandhaa		1
						Wei Yi		1.5
																Alireza Firouzja		0
	Alexander Grischuk		1			Jan-Krzysztof Duda		1.5
											Jan-Krzysztof Duda		2			Jan-Krzysztof Duda		2
	Jan-Krzysztof Duda		2
											Yu Yangyi		1
						Yu Yangyi		1.5
	Samuel Sevian		1			Anish Giri		0.5
	Anish Giri		2

Chess.com Classic

Play-offs

	Round 1					Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Final															Grand Final
	Winners Bracket
	Magnus Carlsen		2.5
	Jan-Krzysztof Duda		1.5
						Magnus Carlsen		3
						Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		0
	Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		2.5
	Fabiano Caruana		1.5
											Magnus Carlsen		3
											Nodirbek Abdusattorov		1
	Nodirbek Abdusattorov		3
	Denis Lazavik		1
						Nodirbek Abdusattorov		2.5
						Wei Yi		0.5
	Wei Yi		2.5
	Vladislav Artemiev		1.5
																Magnus Carlsen		3
																Hikaru Nakamura		1
	Hikaru Nakamura		3
	Levon Aronian		2
						Hikaru Nakamura		2.5
						Ding Liren		0.5
	Ding Liren		2.5
	R Praggnanandhaa		1.5
											Hikaru Nakamura		3
											Ian Nepomniachtchi		2
	Gukesh Dommaraju		1
	Vladimir Fedoseev		3
						Vladimir Fedoseev		2																							Magnus Carlsen		2.5
						Ian Nepomniachtchi		3																							Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		0.5
	Ian Nepomniachtchi		2.5
	Arjun Erigaisi		2.5
	Round 1					Round 2					Round 3					Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Final
	Losers Bracket					Vladimir Fedoseev		2
																Nodirbek Abdusattorov		1.5
	Jan-Krzysztof Duda		1			Fabiano Caruana		0
											Vladimir Fedoseev		1.5			Vladimir Fedoseev		1.5
	Fabiano Caruana		2
											Vladislav Artemiev		0.5													Hikaru Nakamura		0.5
						Ding Liren		0.5
																					Nodirbek Abdusattorov		0			Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		1.5
	Denis Lazavik		1			Vladislav Artemiev		1.5
																					Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		2
	Vladislav Artemiev		2
						Wei Yi		1.5
																Ian Nepomniachtchi		1.5
	Levon Aronian		2			Levon Aronian		1.5
											Levon Aronian		0			Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		1.5
	R Praggnanandhaa		1
											Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		2
						Maxime Vachier-Lagrave		2
	Gukesh Dommaraju		0			Arjun Erigaisi		1
	Arjun Erigaisi		2

Esports World Cup

Main article: 2025 Esports World Cup – Chess

In December 2024, Chess.com announced a partnership with the Esports World Cup Foundation to include chess in the 2025 Esports World Cup, with the Champions Chess Tour now serving as the main qualifier. ^[5]

Notes

1. The Esports World Cup is considered a separate event from the Champions Chess Tour. ^{[1] [2]}

References

1. "Chess at EWC25 - Rulebook". Esports World Cup Foundation. p. 7. Retrieved 30 July 2025. The competitions part of the Chess Championship Tour 2025 will count with their own set of competitions and leaderboard that will feed 12 titled contestants into the EWC 2025.
2. "Chess.com Official 2025 Event Rulebook - Champions Chess Tour". Chess.com. Retrieved 2025-05-21. The Champions Chess Tour ("CCT") consists of two online events . . . Based on event performance, players can qualify for the in-person "Esports World Cup" (EWC), owned and operated by the Esports World Cup Foundation ("Organizing Partner").
3. "Champions Chess Tour Chessable Masters 2025 – Results" . Retrieved 2025-05-21.
4. "Champions Chess Tour Chess.com Classic 2025 – Results" . Retrieved 2025-05-21.
5. Team, Chess com (2024-12-17). "Chess Makes Historic Debut At Esports World Cup 2025 With $1.5 Million Prize Pool". Chess.com. Retrieved 2025-08-01.