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World Chess champion drops from competition after refusing to change out of jeans

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World Chess champion drops from competition after refusing to change out of jeans

World Chess champion Magnus Carlsen will no longer compete in the World Rapid or Blitz Chess Championships after violating the International Chess Federation’s dress code policy.

Carlsen, who was set to compete in both tournaments in New York City from Dec. 26-28, breached the organization’s rules by wearing jeans to the competition.

FIDE released a statement on the social media site X about Carlsen’s breach of dress code, which read in part, “FIDE regulations for the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships, including the dress code, are designed to ensure professionalism and fairness for all participants.”

“Today, Mr. Magnus Carlsen breached the dress code by wearing jeans, which are explicitly prohibited under long-standing regulations for this event,” the statement continued. “The Chief Arbiter informed Mr. Carlsen of the breach, issued a $200 fine, and requested that he change his attire.”

The statement explained that Carlsen declined the opportunity to change and thus was not paired for the ninth round.

Carlsen, who shared a photo of his outfit on X, spoke about the incident during an interview with Take Take Take. 

During the interview, the chess champion said that he had a lunch meeting and “barely had time” to go back to his hotel room and change before competing, so he only had a chance to change his shirt, jacket, and shoes but “didn’t even think about the jeans.”

“I don’t know if it was after the first game or second game, but I got a warning that I need to change,” he said, before clarifying, “Well, first of all, I got a fine, which is fine. Then I got a warning that I would not be paired if I didn’t go change my clothes.”

Carlsen said that he was given permission to change after the third round of the tournament. He explained that he would change for the next day of competition but was told that he needed to “change now.”

“At that point, it became a bit of a matter of principle for me,” Carlsen explained. “So here we are.”

When asked if he had appealed the decision, Carlsen, 34, said that he was “too old at this point to care too much.”

“If this is what they want to do, I guess it goes both ways, right?” he added. “Nobody wants to back down and this is where we are. It’s fine by me. I’ll probably head off to somewhere where the weather is a bit nicer than here.”

Carlsen said that it would be unlikely for him to come back to compete in the World Blitz Chess Championship, explaining, “I don’t know what would have to change for that to happen, but no.”

“It’s OK,” Carlsen added. “They can enforce their rules, that’s fine by me, and my response is that ‘Fine, then I’m out.’”

In addition to Carlsen’s penalty, FIDE said in the statement that Ian Nepomniachtchi also received a fine for breaching the dress code policy after wearing “sports shoes.” The organization said that Nepomniachtchi eventually complied with the rules by changing into “approved attire” and continued with the tournament.

“These rules have been in place for years and are well-known to all participants and are communicated to them ahead of each event,” the statement read. “FIDE has also ensured that the players’ accommodation is within a short walking distance from the playing venue, making adherence to the rules more convenient.”

Nepomniachtchi referenced the incident on X and shared a photo of his outfit, adding, “As the chief arbiter just told me, none other than Ahmed Adly believes that a chess player should not dress like that. So the $200 fine will (hopefully) go to the Chess Fashion Research Foundation.” 

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