En passant in chess: when the capture is legal and when the right expires
Learn the conditions for en passant, its one-move time limit, legal and illegal examples, and a short quiz to reinforce the rule.
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Chess explained beyond the best move: rules, openings, tactics, strategy, endgames, and great games to understand what happens on the board.
King and rook vs king: the box method to checkmate without stalemate
Learn how to restrict the king, bring your king closer, use waiting moves, and finish the rook mate without allowing stalemate.
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2026 Chess Olympiad: Brazil’s team and how to follow every round
See Brazil’s delegation, the 11-round Samarkand schedule and where to follow pairings, games and standings.
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2026 Brazilian Rapid and Blitz Championships in Fortaleza: registration, time controls and which event to choose
Check dates, time controls, rounds, fees, registration deadline and a practical checklist for choosing Rapid, Blitz or the combo in Fortaleza.
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Buchholz, Sonneborn-Berger and Direct Encounter: how chess tie-breaks work
Learn why players with the same score can finish in different places and how three common chess tie-break criteria are calculated.
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King and pawn vs king: when opposition wins, when it draws, and why the rook pawn changes everything
Learn how to decide king-and-pawn-versus-king endings with opposition, key squares and the practical rook-pawn exception.
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Can a FIDE title norm be voided? What happens when results or participation are manipulated
A norm can cease to be accepted if the tournament or result breaks the rules. See how FIDE separates technical validity, conduct and already confirmed titles.
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When Is Castling Illegal? Check, Attacked Squares, Blocked Paths, and the Rule That Doesn’t Apply to the Rook
Learn when FIDE rules forbid castling, the difference between losing castling rights and being temporarily blocked, and why an attacked rook does not by itself make castling illega...
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Chess Olympiad 2026: how the Swiss system chooses the next opponent
Learn why there is no fixed opponent table, how match points, score groups and floaters build each round, and what is specific to the Olympiad.
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FIDE Election 2026: who votes, the three presidential tickets and how the Samarkand ballot works
FIDE will elect its President and Deputy President on September 26 in Samarkand. See who can vote, the three valid tickets and the rules for a first or second ballot.
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2026 Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities: Brasília times and how it relates to the main Olympiad
See the September 10–17 schedule in Brasília time and understand why the event for players with disabilities is separate from the 46th Chess Olympiad.
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.chess domain: what FIDE and World Chess asked ICANN for — and why it does not exist yet
FIDE and World Chess announced an application to create the .chess top-level domain. It cannot be registered yet because the proposal still has to pass ICANN evaluation, possible c...
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2026 World Chess Championship dates changed: updated Gukesh vs. Sindarov schedule
FIDE regulations approved in August set Game 1 for November 24 and the event for Nov. 22–Dec. 13; see the full schedule and why some pages still show Nov. 25–Dec. 15.
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2026 Chess Olympiad: how the 4 boards, match points and tie-breaks work
Learn why the standings use match points, how the four boards create the match score, and when TB1, TB2 and TB3 are applied.
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CM, FM, IM and GM: how FIDE ratings, norms and direct titles work
Understand the real path to CM, FM, IM and GM: which titles come through rating, which require norms, and how FIDE direct titles work in 2026.
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How to get your first FIDE rating in Brazil: games that count, minimum and publication
To appear on the FIDE rating list, playing five rounds is not enough: the event must be FIDE-rated, the games must be against rated opponents, and the initial calculation must reac...
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How to calculate chess variants without getting lost: candidate moves, opponent's responses and when to stop calculating
Practical technique for organizing the calculation in chess: recognizing critical positions, selecting candidates, testing the best rival response and closing variants when it is a...
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First in-person chess tournament: clock, notation, touch-move and rules that change from online
Going from online to in-person chess requires less of a “minimum level” and more mastery of procedures: rules, clocks, notation, touch-move, electronics and arbitration.
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Chess draw: 3 or 5 repetitions, 50 or 75 moves - when to ask and when it is automatic
Understand when a draw requires a claim and when it ends the game alone, in addition to what counts as a repeated position and what changes in online chess.
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FIDE rating x Chess.com x Lichess: why the numbers are not equivalent and how to compare your level without 1:1 conversion
Ratings from FIDE, Chess.com and Lichess measure performance in different pools and rhythms. Understand why there is no fixed conversion and how to compare your level more accurate...
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Chess rating: why Chess.com, Lichess and FIDE give different numbers and why there is no exact conversion
Chess.com, Lichess and FIDE measure performance across different populations, paces and systems. Understand why the numbers are not equivalent and how to compare them with more con...
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