Firouzja’s unexplained withdrawal from FIDE World Cup 2025 puts his Candidates & World Championship dream in jeopardy

Ever since FIDE released the players’ l for the upcoming Chess World Cup 2025, set to take place in Goa from October 30 to November 27, the absence of two-time Candidates participant and French No. 1 Alireza Firouzja has become a major talking point.ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW VIDEO
The top three players in the world currently, Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, and Fabiano Caruana, will also not be part of the World Cup, but they all have well-documented reasons. Carlsen has dissociated himself from the current World Championship cycle ever since he relinquished his title in 2022. Caruana has already qualified for the upcoming Candidates through the 2024 FIDE Circuit Ratings and therefore does not need to participate in this event. Nakamura is all but assured of his Candidates spot via the highest average rating method, and he has chosen alternative means to maintain his activity to qualify through this specific pathway.
However, Firouzja’s absence leaves a significant question mark over his future in this format. He finished with equal points to Germany’s Matthias Bluebaum in the qualifying event but ended up in third place due to inferior tiebreaks, which ultimately denied him entry to the Candidates 2026.
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While there are no clear reasons as to why Firouzja has not signed up for the event, it is safe to assume the World No. 8 must have declined the invitation, since he automatically qualified for the World Cup. With this withdrawal, his World Championship dreams appear to be as good as crushed, as nearly all avenues for qualification are now closed.
There were three Candidates spots reserved to be awarded through the World Cup. With three players already qualified for the prestigious World Championship challenger event, only two more paths remained for Firouzja to try his luck. However, as things have unfolded, Nakamura is almost guaranteed to be awarded one Candidates spot through the rating qualification, while the final method, the 2025 FIDE Circuit Ratings, is currently being dominated Indian prodigy R. Praggnanandhaa, who is also virtually certain of qualification, meaning the doors for Candidates and then World Championship, at least for this cycle, is over for Firouzja.
The French media also seems equally perplexed Firouzja’s decision. A French chess magazine based in Nice, Europe Échecs, commented on the matter, stating: “Logically, Alireza Firouzja should have been part of this l. Eighth in the world with an Elo of 2754, he was qualified for this event, the last chance for him to participate for the third time in a row in the Tournament of Candidates. How to explain this absence? The Frenchman had shown an excellent level of play at the Grand Swiss and could have hoped to finish on the podium of this World Cup. We have no evidence at the moment to understand this very surprising decision…”
There are still two more spots left in the 206-player field, but it remains to be seen what the Firouzja camp will decide to do at this stage.Story continues below this ad
Full l of confirmed players for FIDE World Cup 2025

#
Name
FED
Rating
B-Year

1
Praggnanandhaa R
IND
2785
2005

2
Erigaisi Arjun
IND
2771
2003

3
Gukesh D
IND
2767
2006

4
So, Wesley
USA
2756
1993

5
Wei, Yi
CHN
2753
1999

6
Keymer, Vincent
GER
2751
2004

7
Abdusattorov, Nodirbek
UZB
2748
2004

8
Giri, Anish
NED
2746
1994

9
Aronian, Levon
USA
2744
1982

10
Nepomniachtchi, Ian
FID
2742
1990

11
Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar
AZE
2741
1985

12
Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime
FRA
2738
1990

13
Niemann, Hans Moke
USA
2733
2003

14
Fedoseev, Vladimir
SLO
2731
1995

15
Le, Quang Liem
VIE
2729
1991

16
Sindarov, Javokhir
UZB
2722
2005

17
Yu, Yangyi
CHN
2714
1994

18
Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi
IND
2712
1994

19
Rapport, Richard
HUN
2711
1996

20
Aravindh, Chithambaram VR.
IND
2711
1999

21
Harikrishna, Pentala
IND
2704
1986

22
Liang, Awonder
USA
2698
2003

23
Nihal Sarin
IND
2693
2004

24
Van Foreest, Jorden
NED
2692
1999

25
Sevian, Samuel
USA
2692
2000

26
Maghsoodloo, Parham
IRI
2692
2000

27
Dubov, Daniil
FID
2691
1996

28
Esipenko, Andrey
FID
2687
2002

29
Sarana, Alexey
SRB
2686
2000

30
Bu, Xiangzhi
CHN
2684
1985

31
Yakubboev, Nodirbek
UZB
2681
2002

32
Robson, Ray
USA
2674
1994

33
Alekseenko, Kirill
AUT
2674
1997

34
Deac, Bogdan-Daniel
ROU
2674
2001

35
Bluebaum, Matthias
GER
2671
1997

36
Shankland, Sam
USA
2670
1991

37
Murzin, Volodar
FID
2670
2006

38
Karthikeyan, Murali
IND
2669
1999

39
Vitiugov, Nikita
ENG
2666
1987

40
Leko, Peter
HUN
2666
1979

41
Artemiev, Vladislav
FID
2664
1998

42
Wojtaszek, Radoslaw
POL
2661
1987

43
Oparin, Grigoriy
USA
2660
1997

44
Nguyen, Thai Dai Van
CZE
2660
2001

45
Chriansen, Johan-Sebastian
NOR
2655
1998

46
Saric, Ivan
CRO
2655
1990

47
Navara, David
CZE
2653
1985

48
Sargsyan, Shant
ARM
2653
2002

49
Mamedov, Rauf
AZE
2651
1988

50
Indjic, Aleksandar
SRB
2650
1995

51
Grandelius, Nils
SWE
2648
1993

52
Yuffa, Daniil
ESP
2648
1997

53
Kollars, Dmitrij
GER
2647
1999

54
Theodorou, Nikolas
GRE
2646
2000

55
Adams, Michael
ENG
2646
1971

56
Gledura, Benjamin
HUN
2646
1999

57
Erdogmus, Yagiz Kaan
TUR
2646
2011

58
Vokhidov, Shamsiddin
UZB
2645
2002

59
Rodshtein, Maxim
ISR
2645
1989

60
Svane, Frederik
GER
2643
2004

61
Salem, A.R. Saleh
UAE
2640
1993

62
Xiong, Jeffery
USA
2640
2000

63
Martinez Alcantara, Jose Eduardo
MEX
2639
1999

64
Chigaev, Maksim
ESP
2638
1996

65
Bacrot, Etienne
FRA
2637
1983

66
Amin, Bassem
EGY
2636
1988

67
Gurel, Ediz
TUR
2631
2008

68
Tari, Aryan
NOR
2631
1999

69
Ivic, Velimir
SRB
2630
2002

70
Hovhannisyan, Robert
ARM
2629
1991

71
Martirosyan, Haik M.
ARM
2628
2000

72
Cheparinov, Ivan
BUL
2627
1986

73
Sargissian, Gabriel
ARM
2626
1983

74
Anton Guijarro, David
ESP
2625
1995

75
Donchenko, Alexander
GER
2624
1998

76
Dardha, Daniel
BEL
2624
2005

77
Svane, Rasmus
GER
2620
1997

78
Najer, Evgeniy
FID
2613
1977

79
Pranesh M
IND
2611
2006

80
Mishra, Abhimanyu
USA
2611
2009

81
Lagarde, Maxime
FRA
2609
1994

82
Ivanchuk, Vasyl
UKR
2608
1969

83
Suleymanli, Aydin
AZE
2602
2005

84
Idani, Pouya
IRI
2599
1995

85
Iniyan, Pa
IND
2599
2002

86
Daneshvar, Bardiya
IRI
2598
2006

87
Cheng, Bob
AUS
2596
1997

88
Meier, Georg
URU
2596
1987

89
Motylev, Alexander
ROU
2595
1979

90
Brkic, Ante
CRO
2594
1988

91
Cori, Jorge
PER
2594
1995

92
Henriquez Villagra, Crobal
CHI
2594
1996

93
Narayanan S L
IND
2591
1998

94
Huschenbeth, Niclas
GER
2591
1992

95
Yilmaz, Mustafa
TUR
2591
1992

96
Warmerdam, Max
NED
2591
2000

97
Jobava, Baadur
GEO
2590
1983

98
Adly, Ahmed
EGY
2589
1987

99
Abasov, Nijat
AZE
2587
1995

100
Zemlyanskii, Ivan
FID
2586
2010

101
Nesterov, Arseniy
FID
2584
2003

102
Neiksans, Arturs
LAT
2584
1983

103
Kourkoulos-Arditis, Stamatis
GRE
2583
1998

104
Bartel, Mateusz
POL
2581
1985

105
Bai, Jinshi
CHN
2578
1999

106
Lupulescu, Constantin
ROU
2578
1984

107
Tin, Jingyao
SGP
2577
2000

108
Kantor, Gergely
HUN
2576
1999

109
Ghosh, Diptayan
IND
2573
1998

110
Supi, Luis Paulo
BRA
2573
1996

111
Ganguly, Surya Shekhar
IND
2573
1983

112
Karthik Venkataraman
IND
2571
1999

113
Fier, Alexandr
BRA
2569
1988

114
Petrov, Nikita
MNE
2569
1996

115
Piorun, Kacper
POL
2568
1991

116
Lodici, Lorenzo
ITA
2560
2000

117
Flores, Diego
ARG
2558
1982

118
Bogner, Sebastian
SUI
2558
1991

119
Kovalev, Vladislav
FID
2557
1994

120
Woodward, Andy
USA
2557
2010

121
Can, Emre
TUR
2552
1990

122
Stremavicius, Titas
LTU
2548
1998

123
Subelj, Jan
SLO
2545
2004

124
Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag
BRA
2545
1986

125
Nogerbek, Kazybek
KAZ
2543
2004

126
Raja Rithvik R
IND
2541
2004

127
Maksimovic, Bojan
BIH
2536
2002

128
Velten, Paul
FRA
2536
1993

129
Kuybokarov, Temur
AUS
2535
2000

130
Petrov, Martin
BUL
2533
2000

131
Lobanov, Sergei
FID
2526
2001

132
Makhnev, Denis
KAZ
2525
2000

133
Cardoso Cardoso, Jose Gabriel
COL
2524
2004

134
Samadov, Read
AZE
2523
2007

135
Ahmadzada, Ahmad
AZE
2523
2004

136
Ghazarian, Kirk
USA
2518
2006

137
Rodrigue-Lemieux, Shawn
CAN
2516
2004

138
Peng, Xiongjian
CHN
2515
2000

139
Aronyak Ghosh
IND
2514
2003

140
Blohberger, Felix
AUT
2513
2002

141
Parligras, Mircea-Emilian
ROU
2503
1980

142
Garcia Pantoja, Roberto
COL
2502
1992

143
Lalit Babu M R
IND
2502
1993

144
Galaviz Medina, Sion Radamantys
MEX
2498
2005

145
Fawzy, Adham
EGY
2495
2000

146
Atabayev, Saparmyrat
TKM
2494
1999

147
Bellahcene, Bilel
ALG
2492
1998

148
Suleymenov, Alisher
KAZ
2491
2000

149
Avila Pavas, Santiago
COL
2490
2004

150
Grigoryan, Karen H.
ARM
2485
1995

151
Suyarov, Mukhammadzokhid
UZB
2482
2009

152
Pantsulaia, Levan
GEO
2480
1986

153
Lashkin, Jegor
MDA
2480
2003

154
Divya Deshmukh
IND
2478
2005

155
Gusain, Himal
IND
2477
1993

156
Harshavardhan G B
IND
2476
2003

157
Ansat, Aldiyar
KAZ
2471
2008

158
Siddharth, Jagadeesh
SGP
2468
2007

159
Neelash Saha
IND
2466
2002

160
Oro, Faustino
ARG
2464
2013

161
Berdayes Ason, Dylan Isidro
CUB
2456
1998

162
Cori Quispe, Kevin Joel
MEX
2453
1999

163
Salinas Herrera, Pablo
CHI
2451
1994

164
Agibileg, Uurtsaikh
MGL
2449
2001

165
Banh Gia Huy
VIE
2440
2009

166
Rakotomaharo, Fy Antenaina
MAD
2438
1999

167
Rojas Salas, Steven
PER
2424
2004

168
Liyanage, Ranindu Dilshan
SRI
2423
2003

169
Laohawirapap, Prin
THA
2423
2006

170
Quizon, Daniel
PHI
2420
2004

171
Vazquez, Facundo
URU
2419
2004

172
Mohammad Fahad, Rahman
BAN
2416
2003

173
Tran, Thanh Tu
JPN
2412
1990

174
Schnaider, Ilan
ARG
2409
2011

175
Wang, Shixu B
CHN
2407
2001

176
Thavandiran, Shiyam
CAN
2402
1992

177
Amartuvshin, Ganzorig
MGL
2398
2005

178
Cahaya, Satria Duta
INA
2393
2008

179
Cordoba Roa, Angel Gabriel
COL
2387
2006

180
Mandizha, Farai
ZIM
2375
1985

181
Orozbaev, Eldiyar
KGZ
2375
2006

182
Akhmedinov, Satbek
KAZ
2372
2006

183
Manon, Reja Neer
BAN
2369
2010

184
Mwali, Chitumbo
ZAM
2364
1986

185
Silva, David
ANG
2347
1998

186
Elbilia, Jacques
MAR
2332
1971

187
Efimov, Igor
MNC
2331
1960

188
Ilkhomi, Jaloliddin
TJK
2322
2007

189
Kavin Mohan
MAS
2309
2011

190
Husbands, Orlando
BAR
2291
1997

191
Barrish, Daniel
RSA
2284
2000

192
Kigigha, Bomo Lovet
NGR
2263
1982

193
Salih, Akar Ali Salih
IRQ
2212
1990

194
Amdouni, Zoubaier
TUN
2186
1987

195
Boulrens, Ala Eddine
ALG
2174
2000

196
Huh, Isaak
KOR
2139
2011

197
Mafaaz Khalid
PAK
2118
1983

198
Allam, Mohamed
PLE
2112
2001

199
Alrehaili, Ahmed Abdullah S
KSA
2109
2000

200
Ndahangwapo, Heskiel
NAM
2081
2000

201
Qin, Oscar Shu Xuan
NZL
2078
2008

202
Li, Yiheng
HKG
1994
2012

203
Abugenda, Nagi
LBA
1972
1986

204
Maurizzi/Grebnev match winner

205

206

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