FIDE World Rapid and Blitz 2025: World’s Best Arrive in Doha

Lichess Coverage

As usual, the games will be broadcast live daily on Lichess, with key updates across our social media channels, including daily interviews on YouTube with players on-site in Doha by IM Laura Unuk.

Overview

With a total prize fund of over €1 million, it’s no surprise that the best in the world will be playing. Aside from just prize money, this annual adrenaline-filled event also gives two Open & Women's World Championship titles across 5 days of high-octane play.

Format

The Rapid tournament will be played as a Swiss, with 13 rounds in the Open and 11 rounds in the Women's event. The time control is 15 minutes with a 10-second increment.

The Blitz tournament consists of two stages: a Swiss qualifier, with 19 rounds in the Open and 15 rounds in the Women's event, followed by the 4-player knockout finals to crown the new Open and Women's World Blitz Champions. The time control is 3 minutes with a 2-second increment.

Schedule

The first round of each day always starts at 14:00 local time (11:00 UTC). See our broadcasts for the exact schedule in your own time zone.

The Players

The best Rapid and Blitz player in history, GM Magnus Carlsen, will be playing. Carlsen, who abdicated from his Classical World Champion title back in 2022, has continued vying for the Rapid and Blitz titles. He stirred some controversy in 2024 over petitioning FIDE to share the title with GM Ian Nepomniachtchi. A perennial favourite, Carlsen has been the Rapid World Champion five times, and Blitz World Champion eight times.

Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi shared the World Blitz title last year. Photo: Michał Walusza / FIDE

Amongst the top players in the Rapid and Blitz include: GM Ian Nepomniachtchi, who is currently the joint Blitz World Champion with Carlsen; GM Levon Aronian; GM Alireza Firouzja; GM Fabiano Caruana; GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave; GM Vladislav Artemiev; GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov (the youngest World Rapid Champion, when he won it in 2021 at the age of 17); GM Arjun Erigaisi; GM Wesley So; and GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda.

Outside of the top 10 in the Rapid and Blitz, but highly notable include: the Classical World Champion, GM Gukesh D; GM Vincent Keymer; GM Praggnanandhaa R; GM Anish Giri (the Grand Swiss winner and a Candidates qualifier); GM Javokhir Sindarov (the World Cup winner, and another Candidates qualifier); GM Andrey Esipenko (another Candidates qualifier); GM Richard Rapport; GM Oleksandr Bortnyk; GM Hans Niemann; GM José Martínez Alcántara - the list goes on!

Gukesh, the Classical World Champion, didn't play in the last World Rapid & Blitz. Photo: Maria Emelianova / FIDE

Alongside the Open, the Women’s event will be concurrently occurring. Equally star-studded, the top women players in the world will be playing, including: the Women’s Classical World Champion and Women’s Blitz Champion, GM Ju Wenjun (also number 1 seed in Women’s Rapid); GM Humpy Koneru (the defending Women’s Rapid Champion); GM Tan Zhongyi; GM Lei Tingjie; GM Aleksandra Goryachikna; GM Bibisara Assaubayeva; GM Kateryna Lagno; GM Alexandra Kosteniuk; GM Zhu Jiner; GM Harika Dronavalli; GM Vaishali R; and GM Divya Deshmukh.

Will Ju Wenjun be able to hold all three Women's World Championship titles at the same time? Photo: Anna Shtourman / FIDE

Forecast

The Rapid and Blitz is historically an unpredictable event given the fast time controls, although Carlsen to defend or win at least one of the titles seems like an eternally safe bet. Likewise, in the Women’s tournament, it could be possible that Ju Wenjun could hold all three Women’s World Championship titles at the same time.

In the Open tournament, realistically any of the top 20 seeds - from the aforementioned Carlsen to three-time Blitz World Champion GM Alexander Grischuk - have a great chance. Firouzja was like a juggernaut in the recent rapid Global Chess League, becoming the Player of the Tournament and finishing in second place with his team. Nepomniachtchi is a speed chess specialist and one of the few players in the top 10 ratings across Rapid and Blitz, while players who are extremely strong in online blitz and bullet chess, like GM Nihal Sarin or Oleksandr Bortnyk, will always be a threat.

One of the strongest online bullet players in the world: Nihal Sarin. Photo: Rafal Oleksiewicz / FIDE

Although Ju Wenjun is the top seed in both sections of the Women's event, there are at least as many serious contenders as in the Open event. Vaishali is just one example: she won this year's Women's Grand Swiss and outperformed all expectations in last year's Blitz qualifier stage, finishing a clear point ahead, and went on to take home a bronze medal. However, she is not even seeded in the top 10, and the same goes for an exceptional player like former Women's World Champion GM Mariya Muzychuk, among others.

Ju Wenjun's compatriots Tan Zhongyi, Lei Tingjie, and Zhu Jiner all have a good chance of performing well and winning, as does the reigning Women's Rapid Champion, Humpy Koneru. The former Women's Rapid Champion and three-time Women's Blitz Champion, Kateryna Lagno (the other bronze medallist of last year's Women's Blitz Championship) is also among the top seeds again - seeded 4th in the Blitz and 6th in the Rapid - and is definitely one of the top contenders in a star-studded field.

The 2024 Women's Blitz medallists: Lei Tingjie (silver), Ju Wenjun (gold), Kateryna Lagno (bronze), Vaishali R (bronze). Photo: Lennart Ootes / FIDE

What are your predictions? Who are you supporting? Tell us in the comments!