Global Chess League 2025: Results, Winner and Final Standings

Overview

Global Chess League 2025 was the third season of the league and the first in India. Six franchise teams played a double round robin of 30 matches at the Royal Opera House in Mumbai, then the top two met in a best-of-two final on 23 December. The opening ceremony was on 13 December and the first matches were played on 14 December.

Triveni Continental Kings, the champions of 2023 and 2024, won the round robin by nine match points. In the final they lost both matches to Alpine SG Pipers, who had finished second in the standings one game point ahead of Ganges Grandmasters. PBG Alaskan Knights took third place in the first third-place playoff in the history of the league.

The prize fund was USD 1,000,000. The 2026 season, the fourth, was announced at the closing ceremony and is played in Bengaluru.

The six teams

1. 1.Triveni Continental Kings: Alireza Firouzja (Icon), Wei Yi, Vidit Gujrathi, Alexandra Kosteniuk, Zhu Jiner, Marc'Andria Maurizzi.
2. 2.Alpine SG Pipers: Fabiano Caruana (Icon), R Praggnanandhaa, Anish Giri, Hou Yifan, Nino Batsiashvili, Leon Luke Mendonca. The franchise plays as Alpine APL Pipers in 2026.
3. 3.Ganges Grandmasters: Viswanathan Anand (Icon), Vincent Keymer, Javokhir Sindarov, Stavroula Tsolakidou, Polina Shuvalova, Raunak Sadhwani.
4. 4.PBG Alaskan Knights: D Gukesh (Icon), Arjun Erigaisi, Leinier Dominguez, Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, Kateryna Lagno, Daniel Dardha.
5. 5.upGrad Mumba Masters: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Icon), Wesley So, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Koneru Humpy, Dronavalli Harika, Bardiya Daneshvar. The franchise plays as CheQ Mumba Masters in 2026.
6. 6.FYERS American Gambits: Hikaru Nakamura (Icon), Richard Rapport, Vladislav Artemiev, Bibisara Assaubayeva, Teodora Injac, Volodar Murzin.

Format and scoring

Each team fielded six players per match on six boards: one Icon, two Superstar men, two Superstar women and one Prodigy. Games were rapid, 20 minutes for the whole game with a 2-second increment per move from move 41. A win with Black scored 4 game points, a win with White 3, a draw 1 for each side. The team with more game points won the match and took 3 match points; a tie in game points gave 1 match point to each team.

The standings were ordered by match points, then game points. The first two teams played the final as the best of two matches with colours reversed in the second match, scored with the standard 1, 0.5 and 0 per game. Third and fourth played a third-place playoff under the same rules, with blitz tiebreak matches when the rapid matches finished 1-1.

Final standings

Final standings after the double round robin of 30 matches. Every match had a winner on game points, so no match points were shared. Alpine SG Pipers, Ganges Grandmasters and PBG Alaskan Knights finished level on 15 match points and were separated by game points.

The final

1. 1.Final, match 1 (Alpine SG Pipers with Black): Alpine SG Pipers 4, Triveni Continental Kings 2
2. 2.Final, match 2 (Alpine SG Pipers with White): Alpine SG Pipers 4.5, Triveni Continental Kings 1.5

Alpine SG Pipers won the final 2-0 on 23 December 2025. Anish Giri beat Wei Yi in both matches and was named MVP of the final. In the second match Alireza Firouzja lost on time in a winning position against Fabiano Caruana. Triveni Continental Kings had won the round robin by nine match points and were denied a third title in a row.

Third-place playoff

1. 1.Third-place playoff, rapid match 1: Ganges Grandmasters 4, PBG Alaskan Knights 2
2. 2.Third-place playoff, rapid match 2: PBG Alaskan Knights 3.5, Ganges Grandmasters 2.5
3. 3.Third-place playoff, blitz match 1: PBG Alaskan Knights 3.5, Ganges Grandmasters 2.5
4. 4.Third-place playoff, blitz match 2: PBG Alaskan Knights 4, Ganges Grandmasters 2

The rapid matches finished 1-1, so third place was decided in blitz. Kateryna Lagno beat Polina Shuvalova in both blitz games and D Gukesh beat Viswanathan Anand in the second blitz match. PBG Alaskan Knights, who had lost their first four matches of the season, finished third.

Awards and prize money

Champions

Alpine SG Pipers

Runners-up

Triveni Continental Kings

Third place

PBG Alaskan Knights

Male Player of the Tournament

Alireza Firouzja (Triveni Continental Kings)

Female Player of the Tournament

Hou Yifan (Alpine SG Pipers)

MVP of the final

Anish Giri (Alpine SG Pipers)

Prize fund

USD 1,000,000

Notable facts

1. 1.Alireza Firouzja won his first five games of the season and finished as Male Player of the Tournament.
2. 2.Hou Yifan won three games in a row with Black, which carried Alpine SG Pipers into the final.
3. 3.Alpine SG Pipers lost 6-11 to PBG Alaskan Knights in the last round and still qualified for the final, one game point ahead of Ganges Grandmasters (84 to 83).
4. 4.upGrad Mumba Masters scored the second-most game points of the season (92) but finished fifth after losing all four matches against the two finalists.
5. 5.FYERS American Gambits beat upGrad Mumba Masters 16-1, with five wins and one draw on the six boards.

Other seasons: Global Chess League 2023, Global Chess League 2024, Global Chess League 2026. All champions: winners and past seasons. League overview: Global Chess League.

Frequently asked questions