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Popular Chess Tournaments and Hosting Cities

Here are 20 chess tournaments with cities hosting these prestigious championships across the world:

  • Tata Steel Chess Tournament – Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands
  • London Chess Classic – London, United Kingdom
  • St. Louis Rapid & Blitz – St. Louis, USA
  • Biel Chess Festival – Biel, Switzerland
  • Reykjavik Open – Reykjavik, Iceland
  • Khanty-Mansiysk Chess Olympiad – Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia
  • Chennai Grandmaster Chess Tournament – Chennai, India
  • Sochi Grand Prix – Sochi, Russia
  • Shanghai Grand Prix – Shanghai, China
  • Beijing Grand Prix – Beijing, China
  • Budapest Chess Festival – Budapest, Hungary
  • Jerusalem Chess Olympiad – Jerusalem, Israel
  • Baku Chess Olympiad – Baku, Azerbaijan
  • Tbilisi World Chess Cup – Tbilisi, Georgia
  • Istanbul Chess Olympiad – Istanbul, Turkey
  • Warsaw Chess Championship – Warsaw, Poland
  • Dubai Open Chess Championship – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
  • Mumbai Chess Championship – Mumbai, India
  • Bangkok Chess Club Open – Bangkok, Thailand
  • Monte Carlo Chess Championship – Monte Carlo, Monaco

These are just a handful selection of chess tournaments with city names, there are many more held in cities around the world. Some well known cities organizing the chess tournaments are:

Moscow, Russia: Moscow has a rich history of hosting major chess tournaments and is considered one of the chess capitals of the world. It has been the location for numerous World Chess Championship matches and other prestigious events.

Baku, the capital and commercial hub of Azerbaijan, is a low-lying city with coastline along the Caspian Sea. Baku will be host to the world chess championship, top players will compete to qualify for the 2024 Candidates tournaments.

St. Petersburg, Russia: St. Petersburg, formerly known as Leningrad, has also been a prominent location for chess tournaments and is home to the famous Leningrad Chess Club.

New York City, USA: New York has hosted several high-profile chess tournaments, including the World Chess Championship matches in 1995 and 2016.

London, United Kingdom: London is a frequent host of major chess tournaments, including the London Chess Classic and the historic Staunton Memorial Tournament.

Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands: This small Dutch village is famous for hosting the Tata Steel Chess Tournament, one of the longest-running and prestigious chess events in the world.

Biel, Switzerland: Biel has been known for organizing strong international chess tournaments, including the Biel International Chess Festival.

Reykjavik, Iceland: Reykjavik was the site of the historic 1972 World Chess Championship match between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky.

Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia: This Russian city has hosted several major chess events, including the Chess Olympiad and the Women’s World Chess Championship.

Chennai, India: Chennai gained prominence in the chess world for hosting the World Chess Championship match in 2013 between Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen.

Sochi, Russia: Sochi hosted the World Chess Championship match in 2014 between Magnus Carlsen and Viswanathan Anand.

Shanghai and Beijing, China: China has been a rising force in the world of chess, and these cities have hosted major events like the Grand Prix tournaments.

Budapest, Hungary: Budapest has a long history of hosting chess tournaments and is home to the Hungarian Chess Federation.

Jerusalem, Israel: Jerusalem has hosted the Chess Olympiad, a biennial team chess tournament.