FIDE announced format changes for the World Chess Cup on July 13. The changes include a new time control, tournament duration, number of participants, and other adjustments. The changes take effect starting from the FIDE World Chess Cup 2027.

The tournament will feature a two-stage format and will last 19 days. The first stage, a Swiss qualification, will feature a Fast Classical 45+30 time control. In the Open World Cup, participants will be divided into 4 Swiss groups, and in the Women’s World Cup into 2. Each Swiss tournament will be played over 9 rounds across 5 days.

The Top 16 players from the first stage will advance to the second Knockout stage. Starting from the 1/8 finals, will be featured the current World Cup format with Classical 90+30 time control.

The number of participants in the Open and Women’s tournaments has been increased from 206 to 224 and from 103 to 128 respectively. The total prize fund has been increased from $2.67 million to $3.3 million.

The FIDE World Chess Cup is an international individual tournament held every two years. The tournament has been held since 2000, and until 2002 it featured a multi-stage system. From 2005 to 2025, the event featured a single-elimination system.

Credit: Michal Walusza / FIDE