Chess.com’s 2024 Speed Chess Championship will mark the first time that the event incorporates a live final for the showpiece competition. This time, the top four will battle over the board, with Paris serving as host for the great chess clash between Carlsen, Nakamura, Firouzja, and… Hans Niemann.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Speed Chess Championship live finals, the format and schedule, and the Carlsen-Niemann showdown.
What is the chess.com Speed Chess Championship?
The Speed Chess Championship, or SCC for short, is chess.com’s flagship fast time control competition, pitting the best players in the world against one another in match play format featuring three progressively faster time controls (5+1 and 3+1 blitz alongside 1+1 bullet) and a countdown clock.
Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura have dominated the competition ever since its creation in 2017, with the American claiming six wins to the Norwegian phenom’s three. They are both still in the running for this year’s title, with two strong challengers in hot pursuit.
This edition will mark the first time that the event will conclude with over-the-board live play rather than as an exclusively online competition.
Which players qualified for the live Speed Chess Championship 2024 final?
The four players who have qualified for the SCC semifinals this year are:
- Magnus Carlsen
- Hikaru Nakamura
- Alireza Firouzja
- Hans Niemann
This year’s live Speed Chess Championship finals will also feature a long-awaited clash between world number one Magnus Carlsen and Hans Niemann, the player he has publicly accused of cheating after a controversial defeat at 2022’s Sinquefield Cup. Since then, we’ve seen a lawsuit and many great wars of words, with the Norwegian avoiding Niemann in meaningful competitive play whenever possible.
This time, he confirmed he’d face the young American, saying, “I think if I have a decent day, I’ll probably win without too many issues.”
On the other side of the bracket, two speed chess demons will do battle in the form of Nakamura and Firouzja, and it will be fascinating to follow how the shift to over-the-board play will impact these two legends of the royal game.
Speed Chess Championship 2024 finals schedule and venue
This year’s SCC finals will take place in Paris, specifically the ESpot, which is France’s largest gaming and esport complex in the rue de Rivoli.
The regular season of the SCC took place between July 25 and Aug. 9, with the live finals scheduled for Sept. 6-8, with four matches to be played in total, including a third-place match.
The semifinal results are:
- Firouzja-Nakamura 16-11
- Carlsen-Niemann 17.5-12.5
This means the consolation final on Sep. 7 will be Nakamura-Niemann (21-9), and the grand final on Sept. 8 is Carlsen-Firouzja (23.5-7.5).
The prize pool of the event is $175,000 in total, $65,000 of which is to be distributed in the Paris matches. In each match, the winner is guaranteed half the total prize ($20-20,000 for the semis, $10,000 in the consolation final and $35,000 in the grand final), with the rest split based on the players’ win percentage in the match.
Where can I watch the Speed Chess Championship?
The 2024 Speed Chess Championship live finals are going to be covered on chess.com’s official broadcast on Twitch and YouTube, with a dedicated event page where you can also follow the competition.
