<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="13265d576fe9ac646220c3616939849ab25d1bb1"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/13265d576fe9ac646220c3616939849ab25d1bb1/0_430_6053_4842/1000.jpg" alt="Nikita Vitiugov in action at the European championships in Georgia" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Nikita Vitiugov showed his class with victory in the fifth round at the European championships in Georgia. Photograph: Michał Walusza/Fide </figcaption> </figure>

England’s open team jumped into an outside medal chance on Friday as this week’s European championships at Batumi, Georgia, passed the halfway mark. However, with only three rounds left after Saturday’s rest day, they still have to meet the front runners from Ukraine and the Netherlands. Leaders after six of the nine rounds: Open: 1 Ukraine 11 match points (15 game points), 2 Netherlands 10 (15.5), 3 Azerbaijan 9 (14). Also: 5 England 8 (14). Women: 1 Poland 12 (16.5), 2 Germany 9 (14), 3 Ukraine 9 (15,5). Also: 11 England 7 (13.5). Germany are placed second ahead of Ukraine due to superior Buchholz points. England’s Open strategy appeared to be for the experienced top boards, the former Russian champion Nikita Vitiugov and the nine-time British champion Michael Adams, to play solidly in a holding operation against the heavy hitters of the top teams, for Gawain Maroroa Jones and Luke McShane to play positively on three and four, and for Shreyas Royal, 16, to gain experience on the reserve board. Vitiugov has shown his class, and in Thursday’s fifth round he <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-chess-championship-2025--open/round-5/fpVuADRh/WPlhhLJt">exploited his French opponent’s errors</a> to win a pawn, then a piece, before finally trapping Black’s knight in the corner. Adams had his first defeat on Thursday after three draws while Jones has been the best performing England player, with three wins and two draws, including this <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-chess-championship-2025--open/round-6/iXSvuBJn/WlTT5gkW">sixth round recovery</a> from a difficult opening. McShane, who lost in round two, recovered in round three when his Lithuanian opponent blundered. In round four McShane found his touch in a version of the Two Knights’ Defence which is popular in amateur chess, skilfully exploiting a small edge in an endgame of rook and two knights each. He lost again in round five after mishandling a superior position in time pressure, a recurrent weakness which still haunts him, but won well in round six. Royal, England’s youngest ever grandmaster, has held his own and won well against Lithuania in an endgame of rooks and opposite coloured bishops. England women drew 2-2 with Georgia 2 in round six, including a <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-chess-championship-2025--women/round-6/DkudWQcv/Gxwer8rk">fine strategic game</a> by Harriet Hunt. Jovanka Houska, the well-known online commentator, has been solid on top board for England women, although she is yet to win a game. The star so far has been Elmira Mirzoeva, 43, the former Moscow women’s blitz champion, whose 4/6 score included this incisive <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-chess-championship-2025--women/round-3/pQpKFbya/0do7ArXB">24-move miniature</a> where she destroyed her Czech opponent’s king defences. Bodhana Sivanandan, aged 10 and England’s youngest ever international player, has held her own with 1.5/3, and it could have been better still. After a 104-move marathon in round three which she lost narrowly, she reached a winning endgame next day but allowed a draw by threefold repetition. The European championships continue daily at noon BST on Sunday (Saturday is a rest day) and all the England games can be followed with computer assessments and commentary <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-chess-championship-2025--open/round-5/fpVuADRh">on lichess</a>. Last weekend provided a double highlight for US chess. Last Friday, the US champion and world No 3, Fabiano Caruana, earned the $150,000 first prize at the St Louis-organised Grand Chess Tour in São Paulo, Brazil, defeating France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the final. Despite the huge prize fund, the GCT finals had their downside. All eight games in the semi-finals and final were halved, some in perfunctory fashion, as the GMs implicitly refused to risk their classical rating points and preferred to decide the event in rapid and blitz. The victor of the prestigious Sinquefield Cup, Wesley So, did not qualify for São Paulo. After winning in Brazil, Caruana flew to Arlington, Texas, for a USA v India match whose format was designed to bring chess into the sports mainstream. Its participants included women champions, influencers, and prodigies as well as top grandmasters. The time limit was just 10 minutes per player per game, with a one second per move bonus in the final minute. Draw offers were banned, as were resignations. Halved games were replayed with five minutes each, then with one minute. The US had White in all games, with the rationale that India would have White in a future return series on home ground. The audience in the Arlington Esports arena was encouraged to cheer and be noisy. Caruana opened with 1 c3 against the world No 4, Arjun Erigaisi, took control, and said afterwards: “The crowd knew I was winning, so I was happy to hear all the noise.” <aside class="element element-rich-link element--thumbnail"> Related: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/oct/03/chess-messi-faustino-oro-achieves-grandmaster-norm-and-2500-rating-at-just-11">‘Chess Messi’ Faustino Oro achieves grandmaster norm and 2500 rating at just 11</a> </aside> The US won the match 5-0, with the world No 2, Hikaru Nakamura, defeating the world champion, Gukesh Dommaraju, after two replayed draws. Their third game was a rare case of one-minute bullet played over the board. Bullet is a familiar format in online chess, with regular tournaments and an annual championship, but it hardly ever happens across the board due to the hazards of knocked over pieces. Nakamura v Gukesh provided a frantic scramble of moves, at the end of which Nakamura grabbed his opponent’s king, stood up, and threw the checkmated monarch into the cheering crowd. Is this the future of international chess? Not very likely … It was also a successful weekend for English players and England teams in Rabac, Croatia, where GM John Nunn, 70, won the silver medal at the European over-65 championship with an unbeaten 7/9 score. Nunn had previously won gold in 2023, but the Georgian GM, Zurab Sturua, retained his title from 2024 by a superior tie-break. Nunn led by half a point at the start of the final round, but in one of his books he had identified last round nerves as a recurring weakness, and he opted for a complex drawing line against the Najdorf Sicilian. John Piggott finished fourth with 6.5/9, while Nunn’s wife, Petra Fink-Nunn, won bronze in the women’s over-50 championship with an unbeaten 6/9. In one of Nunn’s best wins, he smoothly and instructively <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-senior-championships-2025--open-s65/round-8/dsEFX9Y9/TRnKod2L">outplayed his Dutch opponent</a> in a bishops of opposite colours ending. 3993: 1…Qd8! threatens both 2…Bb4+ winning the queen (White’s d5 knight is pinned) and 2…Qxd5+ and 3…Qxh1 when Black is two pawns up. If 1…Qd8 2 Ke2 Bg4+ 3 Kf2 Qh4+ (back to the queen’s original square) and 4…Qxe1.

England, seeded fifth among 40 teams at the start, were fifth after six of nine rounds while England women, seeded 12th among 36, were 11th

Chess: England jump to fifth at European championships, with outside medal chance

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="02db58e736c79401e0a46dbf77a7562efccebdf1"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/02db58e736c79401e0a46dbf77a7562efccebdf1/957_0_5162_4132/1000.jpg" alt="Star signing … The makers of EA Sports FC inked a multibillion-dollar deal to go private this week." width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Star signing … The makers of EA Sports FC inked a multibillion-dollar deal to go private this week. Photograph: Electronic Arts </figcaption> </figure>

When Microsoft announced its intention to buy Activision-Blizzard for a touch over $68bn in 2022, it was the biggest deal ever struck in the games industry, and one of the most surprising. But that shock pales into comparison to the reaction to the latest big move in the industry: EA (Electronic Arts), the publisher best known for its juggernaut sports games Madden and EA Sports FC (previously called Fifa), <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/sep/29/ea-video-game-buyout">is being taken private</a> in the “biggest leveraged buyout in history”. It’s a deal worth $55bn, by a trio of investors who, on paper, look like a collection of end-of-level bosses. Enter player one: Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. The Saudi royal family has been investing its wealth in video games for some years now, and owns its own Savvy Games Group, led by crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, perhaps best known for mass-arresting his own citizens <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/oct/02/five-years-after-killing-a-journalist-in-cold-blood-saudi-arabia-is-stronger-than-ever">and ordering the assassination of</a> journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Player two: Affinity Partners, an investment company <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/25/jared-kushner-affinity-partners-firm-senate-inquiry">led by Jared Kushner</a>, son-in-law of the current US president. And player three: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/22/investment-fund-links-atlanta-police-cop-city-project">Silver Lake</a>, just your run-of-the-mill evil private equity firm, which currently owns a large stake in game engine-maker Unity. Game File’s Stephen Totilo noticed that Affinity Partners’ logo is <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:fs2pfwz4ohuc7nhlshklw55d/post/3lzy2mpfmg22w">a mirror image</a> of that used by the evil corporation in the Assassin’s Creed series. Truly you couldn’t make this stuff up. You might be wondering why Saudi Arabia has been pumping so much money into video games. It has invested heavily in esports, setting up the eSports World Cup in Riyadh; bought up the makers of Monopoly Go and Pokémon Go; and bought stakes in many other game companies, including Nintendo. (<a href="https://www.gamefile.news/p/ea-saudi-arabia-pif-silver-lake-affinity-partners-deal">Game File</a> has a comprehensive rundown of where Saudi money can be found in the industry.) The regime is doing this for the same reason that it has thrown money into sports, media and, very recently, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/sep/30/riyadh-comedy-festival-saudi-arabia">comedy</a>: to improve its international image and distract from the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/article/2024/jul/18/saudi-arabia-uk-exiles-threats-transnational-repression-human-rights">numerous human rights abuses</a> taking place at the regime’s request. It’s pure whitewashing. Or, in this case, gameswashing. It says much about the cultural power of gaming. As for Affinity Partners and Silver Lake: well. There’s money to be made. EA made over <a href="https://www.ea.com/news/electronic-arts-reports-q4-fy25-results">$2bn in profit</a> last financial year, driven largely by its sports franchises. It owns The Sims and Battlefield, too, both series that could be any other publisher’s biggest hit. EA used to be a much broader-interest publisher, and owns 30 years’ worth of wildly varied games properties as a result, from RPG Dragon Age to co-op hit It Takes Two and underrated sci-fi shooter Titanfall. But in the past decade or so, under the leadership of current CEO Andrew Wilson, it has concentrated its efforts mainly on its most profitable sports franchises. Negative reaction to the deal has, inevitably, focused on the Saudi involvement, something that EA’s many thousands of working developers and millions of players are deeply unsettled by (especially as The Sims has one of the largest <a href="https://www.thepinknews.com/2025/10/01/the-sims-lgbt-content-saudi-arabia-ea/">LGBTQ+ followings of any game out there</a>). Among business journalists and analysts, meanwhile, views are mixed. Kotaku’s Ethan Gach spoke to several of them for <a href="https://kotaku.com/ea-saudi-arabia-battlefield-6-mass-effect-bioware-private-equity-2000629947">this article</a>, from which one quote, from NYU’s Joost van Dreunen, stood out: “At the center sits the irrational financial logic that tells you it’s about power, prestige, and staking Saudi Arabia’s claim in American entertainment.” Business-world commentary has highlighted the fact that the buyout deal will saddle EA with an eye-watering $20bn in debt – debt that is likely to be very high-interest, <a href="https://bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-09-29/jpmorgan-s-20-billion-ea-check-marks-win-over-private-credit?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc1OTI1ODMzMSwiZXhwIjoxNzU5ODYzMTMxLCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUM0NQODBHUDlWRDIwMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJCMUVBQkI5NjQ2QUM0REZFQTJBRkI4MjI1MzgyQTJFQSJ9.ksaZj9nX0yx_gFWnM7IDOmgtR6RByrBdr8C-74gkQwQ">Bloomberg claims</a>. This raises concerning questions about how EA’s new owners expect to pay this off. Yet more cuts and downsizing? Juicing up the profits from things like EA Sports FC’s Ultimate Team mode? Reviving EA’s flagging mobile games business? It seems highly unlikely that it will be business as usual for the people actually working at EA, or for players. Electronic Arts is not gaming’s best-loved publisher, not by a long shot. But as a player, even if you don’t like the way EA goes about its business and you don’t much care for Apex Legends or Madden, it’s important think of the thousands who work there. These are people who often go on to develop titles everywhere else in the industry, perhaps making games more to their own taste (and to yours). Even without the involvement of an oppressive regime, this kind of private equity buyout is rarely a positive thing, either for the people who work at the company or for the health of the industry. If you’re a Fifa fan, think of Manchester United, saddled with hundreds of millions in expensive debt after a takeover – and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/may/09/two-decades-glazers-debt-of-morals-manchester-united">going nowhere but down</a> ever since. There is at least one person the deal brought joy to, however: CEO Andrew Wilson. “This moment is a recognition of your creativity, your innovation, and your passion … Everything we have achieved–and everything that lies ahead–is because of you,” he wrote to EA’s employees in an internal email announcing the deal (now <a href="https://www.ea.com/news/exciting-news-about-our-future?isLocalized=true">public here</a>). “Our values and our commitment to players and fans around the world remain unchanged. With continued rigor and operational excellence, we can amplify the creativity of our teams, accelerate innovation, and pursue transformative opportunities that position EA to lead the future of entertainment.” Wilson owns tens of millions in EA shares, each being sold for £157 if and when this deal goes through. Doesn’t that warm even the biggest cynic’s heart? <h2>What to play</h2> It is astounding that two different, inordinately expensive and impressively beautiful historical fiction games set in Japan have been released just six months apart, but here we are. Ghost of Yōtei is out tomorrow and, just like Assassin’s Creed Shadows, it stars a female warrior on a revenge quest across the most beautiful gaming landscapes you’ve ever seen. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/mar/19/pushing-buttons-assassins-creed-shadows-ubisoft">I enjoyed Shadows</a> earlier this year – you can’t fault its gorgeousness and the quality of its performances – but I’m enjoying Yōtei more. Riding around northern Japan, following birds and foxes and the distant screams of people who might need saving, is much more exciting without a map or magic X-ray vision that tells you where the bad guys are. It has a great many enjoyable little interludes where you’re using the controller to hammer a sword at a forge or blow on embers to light a campfire or paint a sumi-e ink artwork, rather than just disembowelling people. The combat is straightforwardly great, a dangerous dance that feels surprisingly like old-school SoulCalibur in the one-on-one duels. Ghost of Tsushima <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2020/jul/14/ghost-of-tsushima-review-samurai-thrills-kurosawa-cinematic-combat">left me slightly cold</a> five years ago, so I’m surprised by how much I love this – it helps that protagonist Atsu is seemingly much less conflicted in her role of blade-whirling death-dealer than Tsushima’s morose protagonist Jin. Available on: PlayStation 5 Estimated playtime: 30+ hours <h2>What to read</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.ign.com/videos/ign-in-conversation-with-dan-houser-at-la-comic-con-2025">IGN interviewed</a> Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser at LA Comic Con recently, who is usually a very elusive character. His favourite game he ever worked on: Red Dead Redemption 2. He also expressed some regret that the studio never made a follow-up to boarding-school satire Bully.</li> <li>Insomniac Games’ Wolverine game finally has <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3pDMUWlA6I&amp;ab_channel=PlayStation">a gameplay trailer</a>! Given the quality of its Spider-Man adaptations, hopes are high for this. It’s out around this time next year. As a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2021/may/12/returnal-review-epic-dance-of-death-with-beautiful-brutal-aliens">huge appreciator</a> of Housemarque’s punishing sci-fi game Returnal, I was also psyched to see footage of its follow up, <a href="https://youtu.be/XtCS5tuvCKs">Saros</a>, which will be out in March 2026.</li> <li>ROG Xbox Ally/Ally X, the abominably-named handheld Xbox-compatible games machine, will cost £500/£800, <a href="https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/handhelds/rog-xbox-ally">Microsoft has confirmed</a>. That puts it about on par with the Steam Deck.</li> <li>Nintendo of America’s president Doug Bowser – how’s that for a case of nominative determination? – is retiring. He’ll be replaced by Devon Pritchard, who’s been at Nintendo for 19 years. Presumably, she’ll be changing her name to Devon Ganon any day now. In other Nintendo news: a <a href="https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/News/2025/September/Announcing-the-Nintendo-POP-UP-STORE-in-LONDON--2922380.html?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=NULL|l_id_NUK_FK39XyTr">pop-up version</a> of its Japanese department stores will open in London later this month, merch fans.</li> </ul> <h2>What to click</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/sep/24/hades-ii-review-underworld-sequel-pc-nintendo-switch-switch-2-supergiant-games">Hades II – underworld sequel is an improvement in every witch way | ★★★★☆</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/sep/25/ea-sports-fc-26-review-fans-take-charge-in-twin-track-tournaments">EA Sports FC 26 – fans take charge in twin-track tournaments | ★★★★☆</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/sep/26/i-was-falling-hard-for-clair-obscur-expedition-33-then-it-betrayed-me-at-the-final-hour">I was falling hard for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – then it betrayed me at the final hour | Dominik Diamond</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/sep/29/occult-objects-a-dead-dynasty-and-a-mobile-bookshop-ten-cosy-new-video-games-for-autumn">Occult objects, a dead dynasty and a mobile bookshop: ten cosy new video games for autumn</a></li> </ul> <h2>Question Block</h2> This week, reader Kevin asks: “I have developed an interest in gaming at the age of 68. I bought a PS5 Pro and am awaiting its arrival. What I would like to know is, are there any explanations and examples of how to use the controller? I have never gamed before so this is all new to me.” Welcome to video games, Kevin! I am absolutely delighted whenever someone writes in to tell me that they’ve decided to get into gaming, especially if Pushing Buttons had anything to do with it. The very best tutorial for the PS5 controller is, my opinion, Astro’s Playroom – a powerfully adorable game about little robots that live inside the PlayStation. It is a short and highly enjoyable crash course in the PS5’s unique features, and it’s also the game that taught my two sons how to use a more complex controller. If you really like it, get the full-length follow up Astro Bot, our <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2024/dec/19/the-20-best-video-games-of-2024">game of the year pick</a> from 2024. If you’ve got a question for Question Block – or anything else to say about the newsletter – hit reply or email us on <a href="mailto:pushingbuttons@theguardian.com">pushingbuttons@theguardian.com</a>.

In this week’s newsletter: The private equity effort to acquire the makers of Fifa and more is the biggest deal in gaming history – financially and morally

Why the enormous Saudi-led deal to acquire EA matters, whether you play games or not

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="ae23bbe49643fc2e90513cf5848ea3717e76bc2f"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/ae23bbe49643fc2e90513cf5848ea3717e76bc2f/314_28_1180_944/1000.jpg" alt="Strong lineup … FC 26" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Strong lineup … FC 26 Photograph: Electronic Arts </figcaption> </figure>

The time has come to relinquish dreams of Fifa’s successor one day emulating old rival Pro Evolution Soccer – in part because its developer doesn’t want it to. Throughout the development of FC 26, EA <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/sep/11/ea-sports-fc-26-preview-new-play-styles-aim-to-tackle-fifa-challenge">met with a panel of influencers and community representatives</a> to directly drive design decisions. The result is a football experience split into two. Offline it’s a sim, where ratings and fatigue come to the fore. Online, it’s purely an esport – fast, and furious, with shots and goals prioritised over William Saliba-calibre defending. Offline, it’s a refreshing call. In career mode, for instance, matches are as sedately paced as they’ve been from any FC or Fifa in recent memory. Tactics matter. Stats differentials such as ball control, and vision, matter. Even weather effects such as wind and the state of the pitch matter, with the ball sticking and/or skidding on wet turf. Patient build-up play is welcomed, and it’s possible to unpick a defence without 17 flicks of the skill stick. There’s a cerebral feel long absent from this series. Indeed, after some stagnant years, manager mode feels like the purists’ way to play. The new career carousel means results affect job stability, with bosses being sacked or poached by other clubs. For the first time, that leads to CPU-controlled teams adopting their incoming gaffer’s tactics, lending welcome variety. Added to that are random events such as training injuries, or one-off headaches – in my West Ham career, Kyle Walker-Peters and El Hadji Malick Diouf were ruled out of an away game at Arsenal due to “dodgy food”. Legacy issues, such as soulless cut-scenes, remain, but it’s a worthy alternative to the always controversial Ultimate Team. Meanwhile, Ultimate Team – or FUT – has long been criticised as little more than a gambling mode, where the people who pay most to open the game’s Panini-like packs of random players, will almost always come out on top. This time, there has been a raft of fan-pleasing changes, such as levelling up goalkeepers using the Evolution mechanic, and the return of all-silver tournaments (online competitions that only let you use silver-ranked players). It’s possible to build a strong side without spending a penny: after one week, my squad already boasts Toni Kroos, Lionel Messi and Rúben Dias. However, those cash-dropping temptations of random packs remain, and will continue to be the series’ most divisive feature. Gameplay within Ultimate Team adopts those “competitive” online settings, and aligns with longstanding community feedback. Prepare for basketball-style goal-fests full of tricks and shots on target. New goalkeeper AI and animations help keep the score down, but it’s still incredibly tough to defend. The lack of fatigue is especially challenging. In previous editions, keeping a fast attacker quiet for 70 minutes would mean he or she being subbed, rewarding your stellar defensive skills. Now they can run at maximum speed deep into injury time, nullifying strong backline play. Again, this is what the player base wanted, but it dilutes any sense of realism. <figure class="element element-video" data-canonical-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2Q4xrASt94" > <iframe height="480" width="854" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/F2Q4xrASt94?wmode=opaque&feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen ></iframe> </figure> This frantic gameplay is more effective and enjoyable in returning five-a-side mode Rush. Myriad quality of life improvements make this as addictive as its distant predecessor, Fifa Street. Teething problems such as players rubber-banding their controller to ostensibly leave you a teammate short are addressed. Keepers make smart saves, and the default perspective intelligently tracks your player while still maintaining full view of the pitch. Here the lack of defensive capabilities are less egregious, and at present it’s the most enjoyable way to experience FUT. FC 26 remains a strong package, despite its deliberate choice to abandon authenticity in the online space. There are still numerous gamers out there who crave realism, even in competitive matches. Yet while this represents a step backwards for real football, it’s unquestionably a stride forwards in the field of fan service. This is not the sim Pro Evo purists have longed for – but as an esports collaborative between the developer and its community, Fifa’s third follow-up achieves the majority of its aims. • EA Sports FC 26 is released on 26 September,

In a groundbreaking move, FC 26 offers a completely different experience depending on whether you play online or off – with goals the ultimate priority

EA Sports FC 26 review – fans take charge in twin-track tournaments

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="c75d04d71167a252114fe8b7d9603d2e10c95cc0"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/c75d04d71167a252114fe8b7d9603d2e10c95cc0/681_0_6830_5464/1000.jpg" alt="Ha Dang holding a laptop in one arm and his UK championship belt in the other" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> The stockbroker won the national title this month despite only learning about competitive Excel tournaments last year. Photograph: Gary Calton/The Guardian </figcaption> </figure>

He will not be the only Briton fancying his chances on the tables in Las Vegas this December, but Ha Dang prefers games of pure skill rather than blind luck. The 33-year-old has booked himself a place at the Microsoft <a href="https://excel-esports.com/">Excel world championships</a> by seeing off more than 40 rivals in the inaugural British competition, a feat that has left him “astounded and privileged”. Dang will head to Sin City to represent Britain against hundreds of others for the title of “world’s best spreadsheeter”, with a $5,000 (£3,690) prize and a personalised championship belt up for grabs. The stockbroker, who works for a Leeds-based company, won the national title this month despite only learning about competitive Excel tournaments last year. He said: “Growing up, I have always been into working with spreadsheets but I did not find many peers with whom I could exchange my formulae and Excel tricks. “It was a delight when I discovered that there is actually a worldwide competition on how to use spreadsheets better and faster, and it is truly amazing to be recognised by that community as a champion of a local chapter.” Players in Excel tournaments complete complex, pre-set equations and puzzles using formulas and shortcuts before their time runs out. It has become a burgeoning form of esport – competitive multiplayer video games – in the past few years. Jaq Kennedy, the founder of the Financial Modeling World Cup (FMWC) UK, which hosts the British chapter of the world championships, said Dang was a revelation and hoped his appearance in Vegas, alongside the reigning world champion, Michael Jarman, would help attract more Britons to give it a go. “Ha beat out the second place in last year’s world championship and another who trains for hours every night, and he only picked up the sport this year,” Kennedy said. “That is an incredible accomplishment and shows what natural talent and drive he has.” “I think we’ll have even more UK attendees in Vegas this year,” she added. “There are a lot more competitors locally that are hungry for more competition, to learn more Excel, and to make friends in the Excel community.” Dang, who came to the UK from Vietnam more than a decade ago for university, said that being able to represent the country that took him in was something he felt immense pride in. “I’m really proud to be able to represent the UK, especially as I got my citizenship just earlier this year,” Dang said. “I cannot stress how grateful I am for the opportunities that this country has given me, it has allowed me to have a steady life, a job and support. I can’t express my gratitude enough and I feel the least that I can do is to represent it well.” Despite the pressure, Dang said he was not scared, but excited for the new experience and hoped he could “inspire the next generation of Excel users and esports competitors” who may come after him. “I can’t wait to fly to Vegas and meet everyone, to explore and to just continue to get better,” he said. “Not just better in my professional life but in my personal life as well. This is huge and I can’t tell you how excited I am.”

Ha Dang will head to the US in December to take part in the Excel world championships after seeing off 40 rivals

Winning formulae: Briton bidding to be ‘world’s best spreadsheeter’ at Las Vegas competition

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="47439c90ae81c1a82a38908dce58e6f941bae82c"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/47439c90ae81c1a82a38908dce58e6f941bae82c/72_0_3675_2940/1000.jpg" alt="Amanda Anisimova showed grit to come back from a set down" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Amanda Anisimova showed grit to come back from a set down. Photograph: Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images </figcaption> </figure>

Rolling report: Amanda Anisimova came from a set down to clinch her place in Saturday’s final against the world No 1

US Open tennis 2025 women’s semi-finals: Anisimova beats Osaka to set up Sabalenka final – as it happened

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="fc05e853d72aebb9dcb541bd8f9b5721fce740c1"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/fc05e853d72aebb9dcb541bd8f9b5721fce740c1/150_0_2893_2315/1000.jpg" alt="Person holding credit and debit cards with Black Jack betting games on computer screen in background" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> In a second study conducted with children aged 13-17, 16% reported seeing content creators sharing links and sign-up codes for gambling operators. Photograph: Islandstock/Alamy </figcaption> </figure>

Children as young as 11 feel tempted to try betting after being “flooded” by celebrities and sports stars promoting it, according to two reports that found nearly 90% of children aged 13-17 are exposed to gambling content online. 
The UK’s leading gambling charity, GambleAware, which commissioned the reports, urged regulators and policymakers to address <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/may/09/revealed-how-fun-social-media-accounts-direct-fans-to-betting-giant">social media accounts and influencers producing betting content</a> on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and Twitch in light of the findings. 
In one survey of 2,100 children aged 11-17, a quarter said seeing a celebrity gambling, or advertising it, had made them want to follow suit, rising to more than a third (36%) among boys aged 16-17. 
This was despite the fact that almost four in five children agreed that nobody under the age of 18 should be exposed to content and advertising about gambling. The legal age to bet is 18. 
In a second study, based on focus groups with children aged 13-17, 16% reported seeing content creators sharing links and sign-up codes for gambling operators, while 14% reported seeing them sharing betting tips and tricks. 
The reports warned about content produced by mainstream UK operators as well as unlicensed sites promoting newer or unregulated products associated with video games <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/feb/04/its-rotting-young-peoples-brains-the-murky-world-of-gambling-in-video-games">such as “skins betting”</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/apr/02/video-game-loot-boxes-problem-gambling-betting-children">“loot boxes”</a>. 
Both involve the use of in-game digital items that have value to players and can be traded, staked or won via mechanisms that replicate real-life gambling. 
Niks Kolosnicins, 24, developed a gambling addiction that severely disrupted his schoolwork and lasted into his university years. 
“I used to see a huge amount of gambling ads when watching online streamers and esports – and with my favourite influencers promoting gambling, and many of my friends regularly betting, gambling became normalised for me,” he said. 
Children who contributed to the study referred to seeing well-known sports stars in gambling content. 
The Labour MP Beccy Cooper, who has called for a new gambling act to replace 2005 legislation introduced under Tony Blair’s government, said existing laws were “failing to protect children from online gambling marketing where influencers portray gambling as socially acceptable or aspirational”. 
She added that “future generations should look back on this era of proliferation, targeting and sports gamblification with the same level of disbelief”. 
The Liberal Democrat peer Don Foster described the report as “extremely concerning” and called for greater scrutiny of gambling advertising. 
Heather Wardle, a professor of gambling research and policy at Glasgow University, said content seen at an early age can mean that gambling becomes “embedded deeply within social practices”. 
“Evidence shows there is a real risk of escalating harms among this already higher-risk age group,” she added. 
The previous government and Labour have taken steps to tighten up elements of gambling regulation – including <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/feb/23/online-slot-machine-stakes-capped-great-britian">cutting the maximum stake on online slot machines to £5</a> – but have stopped short of strict curbs on advertising. 
Zoe Osmond, the chief executive of GambleAware, said: “It is unacceptable that children’s environments continue to be flooded with age-restricted content.” 
A Department for Culture, Media and Sport spokesperson said: “We recognise the impact harmful gambling can have on individuals and their families, and we are absolutely committed to strengthening protections for those at risk, including children and young people. 
“There are already a range of robust rules in place on gambling adverts, including rules to ensure adverts are not targeted at or strongly appeal to children. 
“We will continue to work closely with the gambling industry to ensure that advertising is appropriate, responsible, and does not exacerbate harm.” 
The Guardian approached the Betting and Gaming Council for comment. 
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Those in UK aged 11-17 said seeing a celebrity gambling or advertising it made them want to emulate them, survey finds

Children as young as 11 tempted to try betting after being ‘flooded’ by celebrity endorsement

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="a7502b73981804e58f9c42a98c41c2108faeadb8"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/a7502b73981804e58f9c42a98c41c2108faeadb8/11_0_6489_5191/1000.jpg" alt="Magnus Carlsen at last month’s Freestyle Chess Grand Slam in Las Vegas" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Magnus Carlsen, pictured at last month’s Freestyle Chess Grand Slam in Las Vegas, was in boistrous form in Riyadh. Photograph: Brian Cahn/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock </figcaption> </figure>

Magnus Carlsen was in imperious form at last week’s Esports World Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with a virtuoso performance both on and off the board. On it, the world No 1 won the group stage, the quarter- and semi-finals, and the final, all in dominant style while seeing off the world No 2, Hikaru Nakamura, and one of the leading young contenders, Alireza Firouzja. Offboard, Carlsen exuded enthusiasm for the event, and delivered upbeat and articulate responses to interviewers. The limit of 10 minutes per player per game, without the usual per move increment, was designed for tight TV schedules, and also led to frantic time scrambles and games decided by fractions of a second. <aside class="element element-rich-link element--thumbnail"> Related: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/aug/01/chess-10-year-old-targets-world-record-alongside-grandmasters-at-british-championship">Chess: 10-year-old targets world record alongside grandmasters at British Championship</a> </aside> A new chess phrase was coined, “dirty flagging”, to describe playing to win on the clock in a totally lost or drawn position before the opponent with less time can force checkmate. Carlsen himself declined his first two opportunities to use this technique, but accepted a third when the match situation became critical. In general, the time control favoured Carlsen, Nakamura and Firouzja, who between them have played tens of thousands of blitz and bullet (all the moves in one minute) games on <a href="http://chess.com/">chess.com</a> and <a href="https://lichess.org/">lichess.org</a>. Carlsen made a seemingly conscious effort to present chess in the best possible light. The overall event may have been sportswashing, but the enormous queues to watch every day and the obvious enjoyment of the audiences showed the potential for a new market. The tournament was slickly organised, with fast-moving interviews, game analyses, reviews and tactical highlights all following in quick succession. The online audience on <a href="http://chess.com/">chess.com</a> for the final exceeded 30,000 viewers, more than five times the usual number for a grandmaster tournament. There was over-hype, but not enough to jar. The lead commentator, England’s David Howell, enhanced his reputation as he continually provided calm and objective analysis. Gradually, Howell is becoming the first choice commentator for major chess events. In short, all the signs were that the Esports World Cup can become a permanent and welcome addition to the annual chess calendar. There is a new candidate to become the next super-talent after Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov and Carlsen. At barely 14, Turkey’s Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus has broken numerous age records. He is the youngest ever to achieve a 2600 rating, a record previously held by Judit Polgar, and the second youngest after Polgar to reach Fide’s world top 100. Last week Erdogmus defeated the eight-time Russian champion Peter Svidler by 4-2 in a classical match, the highlight being a 22-move win against his opponent’s favourite Grunfeld Defence <a href="https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=2933502">with a double rook sacrifice</a>, one rook in the game and the other in the notes. Erdogmus now has a fleeting opportunity to beat Fischer’s achievement of qualifying for the world title candidates at age 15. The Turkish youngster will have two chances to do it, at the Fide World Cup and Grand Swiss later this year. The nine-round British championship at Liverpool has its final round on Sunday morning. After five rounds, the eight-time title winner Michael Adams, 53, led with 4.5/5 by half a point from a group of eight, who included the top-seeded former Russian champion Nikita Vitiugov. Victory would enable the Taunton, Somerset-based grandmaster to equal Henry Atkins’s nine championships from the first half of the 20th century and leave him just one short of Jonathan Penrose’s total of 10 from the second half. Adams’s subtle fourth round rook endgame <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/2025-british-chess-championships--championship/round-4/Tzpigbhl/KBrussrL">against the GM Nigel Davies was a classic</a>, while in round five he exploited Shreyas Royal’s hesitant opening <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/2025-british-chess-championships--championship/round-5/HkaIHrs4/jx8E7bzk">to establish early dominance</a>. Adams retained his slender half point over a 10-player peloton in Thursday’s sixth round with a solid draw against Vitiugov, but the two eye-catching results were by Royal, as the 16-year-old won an <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/2025-british-chess-championships--championship/round-6/93ur7ddm/cD2L5yKA">truly elegant 27-mover</a> against IM Marcus Harvey, and 11-year-old Supratit Banerjee, who showcased his burgeoning talent by <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/2025-british-chess-championships--championship/round-6/93ur7ddm/Ot2AoVpG">defeating GM Simon Williams</a>. The championship outcome remained unclear after Friday’s seventh round, when Adams missed a chance to consolidate his lead and was joined by Royal, who defeated Wadsworth. Adams and Royal have 5.5/7, followed by 13 players on 5/7. In the women’s championship, Elmira Mirzoeva leads on 4.5/7, followed by Lan Yao and 10-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan on 4/7. There is live coverage and commentary by GMs Danny Gormally and Nick Pert on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbYtRSsRfnQ">English Chess Federation’s YouTube channel</a> starting at 2.30pm on Saturday and 10am on Sunday. 3984 1 Nxf7! and Black resigned. If 1…Rxf7 2 Qb3! and 3 Qxf7+ wins. If 1…Bc7 2 Qb3 Qb5 3 Nxh6+ Kh8 4 Rxf8 mate.

World No 1 swept the board in every round and was determined to show chess in its best light at Saudi event

Magnus Carlsen shows class and wins $250,000 at frantic Esports World Cup

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="daf2d41d9e73ed485a64bc6c53d5131e511a8de0"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/daf2d41d9e73ed485a64bc6c53d5131e511a8de0/297_0_2686_2149/1000.jpg" alt="God of War Ragnarök screenshot, action-adventure video game" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Like father, like son … God of War Ragnarök. Photograph: Sony Interactive Entertainment </figcaption> </figure>

It is my birthday this week. And while that may not sound like a worthy subject for Pushing Buttons, bear with me. I am now 54 – and so officially in my mid-50s – and I still write about video games for a living. I play video games every day; I work in a home office where I’m surrounded by video games. When I’m not playing them, I’m probably thinking about them. But at times like this, I think: maybe should I stop someday? Is there an upper limit on how long someone can do games journalism? Certainly I only know of a handful of people my age who are still writing about games on a full-time basis. Some of my friends outside the industry still play games, but usually only one or two a year – <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2024/sep/26/ea-sports-fc-25-review-taking-graceful-advantage-of-open-gaming-goal">EA Sports FC</a>, maybe, the latest blockbusting narrative adventure, Nintendo with the kids. If you’re not careful, life has a way of shepherding you away from your interests. I now find it difficult to keep up with some areas of the industry. The world of esports feels utterly alien – the multitude of leagues and competitions, the emerging superstars, the controversies. Following it all is a full-time job, one that is more suited to a sports writer. I’m also way behind on influencers and content creators – I don’t watch <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/KaiCenat">Kai Cenat</a>, <a href="https://www.twitch.tv/lazarbeam">LazarBeam</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/quarterjade/?hl=en">QuarterJade</a>, though I have a vague sense of who they are and how important they have become as arbiters of taste. When I go on press trips to see new games, I’m old enough to be a parent to most of the young writers and creators I meet. The thing is, I’m still obsessed with how games work and how they’re made. I belong to a generation that assumed games would always be for kids, but they’re patently not now. From the nostalgic adventure <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1902960/Lost_Records_Bloom__Rage/">Lost Records: Bloom and Rage</a>, which deals with middle-aged regret to the <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2322010/God_of_War_Ragnark/">God of War</a> series with its study of parenthood and legacy (and part of the <a href="http://www.mattiebrice.com/the-dadification-of-video-games-is-real/">“dadification of games”</a> trend, which started when a certain generation of developers started to have kids), video games now tell stories that span a whole lifetime. So we need journalists of all ages to write about them. Consider film journalism. Roger Ebert wrote about film for the Chicago Sun-Times until his death in 2013; the Observer’s late, great film critic Philip French officially retired at 80 but kept writing about cinema until he died two years later. They never stop watching and enjoying movies, so why should they have stopped writing about them? I now have a longer history in games playing than a huge majority of the younger writers I read, commission and admire. I played Pac-Man when it first arrived; I owned a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2022/aug/24/the-commodore-64-at-40-it-pointed-to-the-future-of-video-games">Commodore 64</a> and a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2018/oct/23/sega-mega-drive-returns-but-this-is-no-retro-toy-sonic-the-hedgehog">Mega Drive</a>; I reviewed a game on the Virtual Boy, for god’s sake. At the risk of this becoming a self-indulgent take on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoAzpa1x7jU">Roy Batty’s closing speech</a>, I’ve seen things you people would believe, but perhaps didn’t actually witness. If history has taught us anything, it’s that first-hand experience is vital in understanding sociocultural impact. And while, today, anyone can load up Space Invaders on an emulator, the experience of seeing that game in 1978, in its context of disco, the early home computing revolution and Star Wars mania, has a kind of emotional patina that is hard to conjure in 2025. I often say how vitally important it is to keep playing – whether you’re playing video games, chess, football or historical battle re-enactments. It’s also important to keep asking questions about the world and the things we enjoy. And when you’ve been doing that long enough, you get to know how the stories often end. Currently, we’re worried about censorship in games, thanks to the machinations of payment processing companies. But I’ve been here before – I’ve been through <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/jul/30/mary-whitehouse-living-my-head-how-video-nasty-scandal-inspired-film-censor-prano-bailey-bond">Mary Whitehouse</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2008/sep/26/law">Jack Thompson</a> and a 100 tabloid moral panics. It’s reassuring to know that this too shall pass. You are always an active part of what you enjoy – the books you read, the teams you support, the gigs you go to. Life is a network of experiences between which we get to draw our own connections and conclusions, and create our own maps of the vast, dizzying cultural landscape we live in. This is as true at the age of 95 as it was at 16, or in my case, at age 54. In short, you’re stuck with me. The game, I hope, is far from over. <h2>What to play</h2> As I’m in a nostalgic mood, I would like to recommend the retro collection Gradius Origins from <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2897590/GRADIUS_ORIGINS/">Konami and developer M2</a>, the undisputed expert in updating classic titles to modern machines. Origins gathers all six instalments in the revered arcade shoot-’em-up series, including Gradius 1-3 and the spin-off Salamander titles, including Japanese, North American and often prototype versions, and it adds an impressive new addition, Salamander 3. These are superlative side-scrollers with cool spacecraft, excellent weapon power-up systems and surreal biomechanical landscapes and bosses. Enemy attack patterns are intense yet beautifully choreographed, the action precise and unforgiving (although you do get to save your progress this time round, unlike the originals). Alongside the games, there are tantalising digital galleries including arcade flyers, concept art and guides to all the enemy ships. It’s a wonderful blast down memory lane. Available on: PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox Estimated playtime: 20 hours-plus <h2>What to read</h2> <ul> <li>I enjoyed <a href="https://www.endlessmode.com/article/the-best-parts-of-death-stranding-2-are-when-the-characters-acknowledge-theyre-in-a-game">this article</a> by Maddy Myers about Death Stranding 2’s fourth-wall shattering moments. I’ve put 100 hours into Hideo Kojima’s weird masterpiece, and his nods to the artificiality of the world have been refreshing reminders about the hyperreal nature of modern games and the role players have in completing the illusion.</li> <li>Variety has <a href="https://variety.com/2025/digital/news/battlefield-6-release-date-sims-movie-ea-laura-miele-interview-1236475794/">a wide-ranging interview</a> with Electronic Arts Entertainment’s president, Laura Miele. It seems there are plans for an Apex Legends movie, to go alongside the publisher’s Sims film that is in the works. Personally, I’d rather see a Mirror’s Edge or Titanfall movie, or even better: a new Mirror’s Edge or Titanfall game. </li> <li>Over the weekend, the video game retail site GOG offered 13 mature-rated games for free, including Postal 2 and House Party – and one-million players took them up on the offer. Its intention was <a href="https://freedomtobuy.games/">to raise awareness of censorship in gaming</a>, after the controversy regarding payment processing terms and NSFW titles. <a href="https://www.eurogamer.net/gog-offers-13-free-nsfw-games-as-it-launches-anti-censorship-campaign-freedomtobuygames">Eurogamer has more</a>.</li> </ul> <h2>What to click</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/aug/05/time-flies-review-existential-flight-game-pc-mac-ps5-nintendo-switch">Time Flies – existential flight game with a bittersweet buzz | ★★★★☆</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/aug/06/aphelion-a-game-european-space-agency-don-t-nod">All-star lineup: Aphelion, a game made in collaboration with the European Space Agency</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/aug/04/the-trolley-solution-the-internets-most-memed-moral-dilemma-becomes-a-video-game">The Trolley Solution: the internet’s most memed moral dilemma becomes a video game</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/aug/01/gaming-was-made-for-the-toilet">Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/aug/01/10-best-classic-seaside-arcade-machines">Punch bags, penny pushers and Hillbilly shootouts: the 10 best classic seaside arcade machines</a></li> </ul> <h2>Question Block</h2> Here’s one from Kohigh Mathy on Bluesky: “Why do some genres, like music, real-time tactics and point and click adventures, seem to vanish for years, only to resurface? Is it market fatigue, tech shifts, or something else?” There are a number of reasons, I think. In a similar way to how certain movie genres continually disappear and return, partly it’s do with generational cycles of influence. A game developer who loved a genre as a child may, as an adult, seek to re-create it – part of the reason we’re seeing so many low-poly survival horror games now is that the creators grew up playing Resident Evil on the original PlayStation. There’s also a cultural, even sociopolitical element – developers are inspired by the world around them and it could be that some contemporary events or themes are best realised by specific game genres. So we may see a sudden boost in military real-time strategy games during periods of global instability and conflict. I think there are technical influences, too. When a new console or graphics card is released, there is a rush to produce classic genres on that platform, because veteran players who fondly recall those game types like to see them reinvented. Then there’s the interplay between nostalgia and innovation in the rediscovery of old genres. In a market where everyone is making Souls-likes, hero shooters and deck-building games, there’s value in producing a new take on, say, a 1990s-style interactive movie game, or a graphic adventure, or a button-bashing multi-sports sim – this way, you’re producing something a little different while still harking back to much-loved archetypes. It’s a win-win situation. If you’ve got a question for Question Block – or anything else to say about the newsletter – email us on <a href="mailto:pushingbuttons@theguardian.com">pushingbuttons@theguardian.com</a>.

My love for video games has never wavered, I have no intention of growing up and moving on

​Forever young? I’m another year older but I’ll never stop playing games - or writing about them

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="35c9e4a0646fb0aceafcbb13dfd1a3ea48f4ab33"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/35c9e4a0646fb0aceafcbb13dfd1a3ea48f4ab33/650_0_4583_3667/1000.jpg" alt="Bodhana Sivanandan competes in the second round of the Delancey UK Chess Challenge Terafinal" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Bodhana Sivanandan recorded her first woman grandmaster norm with a score of 4.5/9 at Aix-en-Provence in France. Photograph: Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters </figcaption> </figure>

England’s grandmasters are in action on Saturday, as round one of the British Championship gets under way at St George’s Hall in the centre of Liverpool. Former Russian Nikita Vitiugov, 38, the national No 1, is top seeded while the No 3 and world senior champion, Michael Adams, is the man in form after the 53-year-old from Taunton, Somerset, won the English title in July. The continuing chess boom, reflecting the easy availability of <a href="https://lichess.org/">online blitz games</a>, the popularity of the world No 1, Magnus Carlsen, and the success of Netflix’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/nov/26/the-queens-gambit-netflix-most-watched-series-hit-chess">The Queen’s Gambit</a>, have combined to spark a record entry of over 1,600 players for the championship and its subsidiary tournaments. Vitiugov, who switched federations in response to the invasion of Ukraine, and Adams, who defies the years and was impressive when winning the English title at Kenilworth, can expect several challenges to appear during the nine-round tournament, which finishes on Sunday week. Gawain Jones, 37, is the defending champion and No 3 seed. Matthew Wadsworth, 25, and England’s youngest ever grandmaster Shreyas Royal, 16, are ambitious for new achievements while Dan Fernandez, 27, is fresh from an impressive first place in the Ghent Open. Bodhana Sivanandan, the 10-year-old Harrow primary schoolgirl who is already in the record books, scored another landmark result last Sunday when she achieved a Fide women’s grandmaster performance with 4.5/9 at the Aix-en-Provence tournament in France. In doing so, Sivanandan broke a historic age record <a href="https://www.saund.co.uk/britbase/pgn/198810londonmixed-viewer.html#:~:text=1988%20World%20Mixed%20Challenge%2C%2022,October%2C%20London%20(Eccleston%20Hotel)&amp;text=Average%20Elo%3A%202341%2C%20Category%204,%3D%205%C2%BD%2C%20WIM%20%3D%203%C2%BD.&amp;text=A%20training%20tournament%20for%20the,Hotel%2C%20near%20London's%20Victoria%20Station">set by Judit Polgar</a>, the all-time women’s No 1, in London 1988 at age 12, and then broken by Hou Yifan, China’s all-time women’s No 2, as an 11-year-old at the Beijing Fide zonal in 2005. Sivanandan met a strong field, including a grandmaster and five international masters. Her fast, confident, accurate and impressive defence in a tricky pawn down rook endgame against 2488-rated GM Ortik Nigmatov of Uzbekistan was <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_OqePY30h0&amp;t=24s">captured on video</a> by ChessBase India. Her overall performance rating for the event was 2401, providing her first woman grandmaster norm and her second of three required norms for woman international master. Her overall Fide rating leapt from 2087 to 2216, her highest yet. The age record for a national championship was set in July 2024 by a 10-year-old, Abdalrahman Sameh Mohamed, who totalled 10.5/11 with a rating performance of 2466 in the Egyptian championship in Cairo. For the UK, the record holder is Akshaya Kalaiyalahan, who won the first of her two British women’s titles in 2013, aged 11. Sivanandan’s latest result suggests that she has made a big quantum jump, as many talented juniors do. She currently has momentum on her side. In such circumstances, extraordinary results become possible. The women’s championship at Liverpool is incorporated within the open event, and on the face of it, winning the title this year could be a bridge too far for Sivanandan. In round one of the British Championship <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast">on Saturday</a> she has been paired with Jones. Her fellow prodigy Supratit Banerjee, 11, will play Vitiugov. The three clear favourites are the former world girls champion Harriet Hunt, the English woman champion, Elmira Mirzoeva, and the defending co-champion Lan Yao, who is fresh from a major success at the Andorra Open, where she achieved her third and final norm for the IM title, although she still needs a 2400 rating for that against her current high of Fide 2382. This was Yao’s <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/41st-andorra-open-2025/round-9/Aq5BIMdY/c87ZpJ3p">winning final round game</a>, which clinched her final norm. She was unbeaten in the Andorra Open against six IMs and a GM. Last Sunday, the same day that Sivanandan and Yao reached their norms, Jonathan Pein, 27, son of the ECF International Director and CHESS magazine editor, Malcolm Pein, made his first IM norm in Oviedo, Spain, sharing third prize with seven wins, two losses, and no draws. Chess made its first appearance this week at the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with a huge $1.5m prize fund. The quarter-finals and semi-finals were both played on Thursday. One game provided an early disaster, as Nodirbek Abdusattorov v Jan-Krzysztof Duda lasted only five moves due to a mouse slip: 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 Bc4 Nxe4 5 Nxe4 d6?? and Black resigned. Of course 5…d5 was intended, when the game is level. In the quarter-finals Alireza Firouzja (France) beat Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 3-1, Arjun Erigaisi (India) beat Ian Nepomniachtchi (Russia) 2.5-1.5, Carlsen (Norway) beat Nihal Sarin (India) <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/esports-world-cup-2025--playoffs/quarterfinals/MEyOl6fZ/ppRYl4yN">2.5-0.5</a>, and Hikaru Nakamura (US) beat Levon Aronian (US) 2.5-1.5. In the semi-finals Firouzja beat Erigaisi 4-1 and Carlsen beat Nakamura 4-3. In the final on Friday Carlsen defeated Firouzja in the best of three sets by 2-0 (3-1, 3-1). In the third place match, Nakamura defeated Erigaisi 3.5-2.5. 3983 1 g4+! fxg4 (if Kh4 2 Bg3 mate) 2 Rd5+! Ne5 3 Rxe5+ Qxe5 4 Qxh6 mate.

Record entry in Liverpool, while Bodhana Sivanandan bids to become youngest national women’s champion

Chess: 10-year-old targets world record alongside grandmasters at British Championship

<figure class="element element-image" data-media-id="afd26b306da4f5a217a8aee8b28756b6c3a13846"> <img src="https://media.guim.co.uk/afd26b306da4f5a217a8aee8b28756b6c3a13846/370_5_3172_2538/1000.jpg" alt="Levon Aronian shakes hands with Hans Niemann after winning the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam" width="1000" height="800" class="gu-image" /> <figcaption> Levon Aronian (left) shakes hands with Hans Niemann after emerging victorious in the final of the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Grand Slam. Photograph: Lennart Ootes/Freestyle Chess </figcaption> </figure>

Levon Aronian, at 42 the oldest in the tournament, scored what he described as “one of the crown jewels” of his career to win the $200,000 (£148,000) first prize at the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Grand Slam last weekend. Aronian did it in style, winning matches against the world No 1, Magnus Carlsen, the No 2, Hikaru Nakamura and the No 5, Arjun Erigaisi en route to victory. Carlsen had to settle for the third prize of $100,000, plus the further indignity of finishing behind his arch enemy, Hans Niemann, whose game with the Norwegian at the 2022 Sinquefield Cup led to allegations of cheating and a $100m lawsuit, which was eventually <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/aug/28/magnus-carlsen-hans-niemann-chess-cheating-allegations-settlement">settled out of court</a>. Niemann was invited to join the commentary team for the final stages of Aronian v Carlsen and made the most of his triumph and a <a href="https://x.com/chessdom/status/1945748829447315953">post-game reunion with the former</a>. Carlsen blamed his defeat on a “complete collapse” of his nervous system. Besides his failure against Aronian, he also allowed Wesley So a mate in four moves. In fairness, he recovered well from his expensive early errors, scored five successive wins before defeating Nakamura in the third-place match, and still leads the overall Tour standings going into the next multi-hub leg in September and the final in Cape Town in December. Niemann showed commanding form when he defeated the US champion, Fabiano Caruana, against whom he had previously had poor results, by 2.5-1.5. In their third game, Caruana settled for a draw by threefold repetition when he had an edge, prompting Niemann to say he was not surprised: “I think that my nerves, when there’s low time, are clearly better than his. I play a lot more blitz, I’m younger, and I also play much faster.” Niemann finally met his match in the final for the $200,000 top prize, which Aronian won 1.5-0.5, but only after a double blunder where the former could have won a pawn race to queen but missed a simple deciding move. Nakamura also failed to clinch a winning sequence against Carlsen before losing 0.5-1.5. It seems that the psychological burden of playing for a total of half a million dollars proved difficult for all of them. The Freestyle Tour’s future is unclear. Its huge $3.75m prize fund dwarfs even the $1.5m for chess in the Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia next week, but is related to a $12m investment by the venture capital firm Left Lane Capital, which was made on the apparent assumption that the Tour would attract major television coverage. That does not appear to be the case so far, even though the event was a sell-out for the hundreds of spectators, who were allowed to bring in mobile phones and could talk loudly, with the players protected from the noise by earphones. The time controls, which were originally slow classical to satisfy Carlsen, were speeded up to one hour rapid in the interest of a fast-paced event. The Tour suffers in the eyes of the majority of grandmasters because entry is in effect restricted to the top 25-30 players in the world, with ratings above Fide 2725. Beyond that, there remains the troubling problem that, although Freestyle Chess sparks creativity and greatly reduces the need for opening preparation, it also makes it harder for even strong players viewing the games to relate the positions to their previous experience. One of the more easily understandable games, and an elegant victory, was <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/freestyle-chess-grand-slam-las-vegas--intermediate-matches-green/game-2/ViWomoxj/YhJuEcYc">Nakamura v So</a>, where the world No 2 trapped his opponent’s queen in just 17 moves. Elsewhere, last weekend’s English Championship at Kenilworth, Warwickshire, turned into a trial of strength between the country’s top two grandmasters, the world senior champion, Michael Adams, and the former Russian champion Nikita Vitiugov, which continued right into a tie-break for first prize which Adams edged 2.5-1.5. It was an impressive performance by Adams, the 53-year-old from Taunton, Somerset, whose wins <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/ecf-english-championship-2025--open/round-4/xfk55zKy/dqDO8JpG">over the defending champion, Gawain Jones,</a> and <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/ecf-english-championship-2025--open/round-6/k5FFWhtX/owcqEKpMwere">England’s youngest grandmaster, </a>16<a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/ecf-english-championship-2025--open/round-6/k5FFWhtX/owcqEKpMwere">-year-old Shreyas Royal</a>, were both of the highest class. Adams’s tie-break strategy against Vitiugov, keeping a tight grip on the position until his opponent lost patience, was also very effective. Vitiugov lost little in defeat. He is a strong grandmaster in the Soviet tradition, and showed his quality by a fine attacking <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/ecf-english-championship-2025--open/round-7/wEw4jEKj/wqhwwHzX">win against Ameet Ghasi</a> in the final round. Royal had the best tie-break of those tied for third, played an excellent attack <a href="https://lichess.org/broadcast/ecf-english-championship-2025--open/round-7/wEw4jEKj/CadmWSUE">against John Emms</a>, and appeared a potential 2600 player. Matthew Wadsworth, whose GM title has just been confirmed by Fide, looked the part. Final leading scores were Adams and Vitiugov 6/7, Royal, Wadsworth, Peter Roberson, and Jones 5.5. Elmira Mirzoeva retained the English Women’s title. The old hands triumphed, while the losers were the ambitious amateurs and the teen or sub-teen juniors, groups that lacked outstanding performers. They will not have to wait long for another opportunity, though, because the British Championship starts at Liverpool next Thursday. Meanwhile Dan Fernandez, the 30-year-old England No 16, who is ambitious to break into the Olympiad team, has just scored a career-best result at the Ghent Open in Belgium, winning first prize with a spectacular 7.5/9, two points clear of the field and with a 2645 tournament performance rating. India’s 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh defeated China’s Tan Zhongyi 1.5-0.5 to reach Saturday’s final of the Women’s World Cup in Batumi, Georgia. Deshmukh will meet her compatriot Humpy Koneru, who won 5-3 against China’s Lei Tingjie in the second semi-final. Finally, a word on <a href="https://acmchess.com/store-united-kingdom#!/AMERICAN-CHESS-MAGAZINE-45-The-31-Greatest-Queen-Sacrifices-of-the-Modern-E">American Chess Magazine</a>, which is one of the best of its kind. The latest issue includes a rare account by Boris Spassky of his first meeting with Bobby Fischer, an analysis of the best queen sacrifices in chess history, advice on openings, and much more. 3982 1 Rxe8+! Rxe8 2 Nxf6+ gxf6 3 Bb5! Resigns. White wins the e8 rook or mates by Qg4+ and Qg7.

World No 1 Carlsen settled for third as Aronian took the $200,000 prize in the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Grand Slam