FIDE and freestyle chess organisers close to amicable agreement after 2-month-long dispute

The prospect of ‘war’ looming over the world of chess seems to be easing up after the organisers of Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour and FIDE are close to an amicable agreement, The Indian Express can reveal. After two months of uncertainty in the sport punctuated open letters and allegations against each other, a ceasefire appears likely. In fact, over the past three days there have been three one-on-one phone calls between German entrepreneur Jan Henric Buettner, the brains and financial muscle behind the ambitious freestyle tour, and FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich to smoothen out matters.
“I already had two phone calls with Arkady yesterday and the day before, and we’re going to have another one today. I can tell you that we are pretty close to reaching an amicable agreement that will lead to a good situation where we kind of bury the hatchet and say, ‘okay, let’s move on with an agreement that works for both sides,’” Buettner told The Indian Express on Friday.
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The phone calls are significant because the last time Buettner and Dvorkovich spoke to each other was reportedly at the start of December. Ties between the two organisations have been strained ever since.
A FIDE official also confirmed that there had been intense efforts over the past few days to calm choppy waters in the sport. There had been some fears of a split in the sport, like the one engineered Garry Kasparov in 1993, where he had started a rival world championship.
The bone of contention between the two parties had been over the use of the phrase ‘world championship’. As the global governing body of chess, FIDE stated that only they have the right to decide which event can be called a world championship. The organisers of the freestyle tour, on the other hand, disputed this.
The organisers of the freestyle tour had offered to pay FIDE $100,000 “purely as a gesture of goodwill and to avoid harassment”. But FIDE had allegedly rebuffed the offer and had demanded $500,000. Story continues below this ad
With an agreement yet to be reached, there is no clarity over what the two parties have been willing to concede.
Gukesh to play in first event in Weissenhaus
The idea of a rapprochement between the two parties will come as welcome news for players, who were facing the uncomfortable prospect of being asked to choose sides.
Jan Henric Buettner, the man behind the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour. (PHOTO: Freestyle Chess/Maria Emilianova)
As the feud was raging in full public view on social media, five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand, who is also a Deputy President of FIDE, pulled out of the first freestyle event of 2025, to be held at a luxury resort in Weissenhaus next week. The Weissenhaus event will see a 10-player field composed of players like Gukesh, Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Fabiano Caruana, Levon Aronian and Alireza Firouzja among others. Other Indian players like Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi could feature in future events that are planned in cities like Paris, New York, New Delhi and Cape Town.
While the agreement is yet to be formalised, Buettner said that there was never any doubt over other Indian players like the reigning world champion Gukesh pulling out. Story continues below this ad
“I’m in very good communication with Gukesh’s father, who is managing his affairs. And they’re very much looking forward (to playing in Weissenhaus). I have communication with each and every player. I’m in very good contact with Arjun, with Pragg, and, of course, with Gukesh. The additional benefit with Gukesh is that he was there at Weissenhaus in last year’s event. Gukesh knows what he can expect at Weissenhaus. That’s why I was not concerned,” Buettner said.
The relationship between FIDE on one hand and organizers of the Freestyle Chess Tour and prominent players like Carlsen and Nakamura had become increasingly strained over the past couple of months, with Buettner announcing that they were “ready for war” while accusing FIDE of blackmailing players to prevent them from playing in the freestyle tour.
Both parties had posted open letters on social media as well.
“If you want a war – try us,” FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky had said in response on X.