Global Chess League players

The Global Chess League is a franchise team competition with six teams of six players. Each squad fields one Icon, two Superstar men, two Superstar women and one Prodigy, and each match is played over six boards of rapid chess. The league began in Dubai in 2023 and played in London in 2024 and 2025; the Global Chess League page covers the history, the champions and the format. The fourth season runs in Bengaluru, India, from 5 to 13 September 2026; the schedule, the points table and the daily reports are on the Global Chess League 2026 page.

The 36 profiles below cover the players named in the 2026 squads. Each profile states the player's FIDE title and federation, the ratings on the September 2026 FIDE list, every Global Chess League season the player has appeared in with the team and its result, career highlights with dates, and the 2026 squad. The 2026 team standing and the finished team matches on each profile come from the official Lichess broadcast and update during the event.

Alpine APL Pipers

The Pipers won the 2025 title in London as the Alpine SG Pipers and enter 2026 as defending champions under a new name. Magnus Carlsen returns as Icon after missing the 2025 season; Anish Giri, the most valuable player of the 2025 final, is the only player kept from the title-winning squad.

1. 1.Magnus Carlsen — Grandmaster, Norway, Icon (board one)
2. 2.Anish Giri — Grandmaster, Netherlands, Superstar, men's boards
3. 3.Vidit Gujrathi — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, men's boards
4. 4.Divya Deshmukh — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, women's boards
5. 5.Koneru Humpy — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, women's boards
6. 6.Volodar Murzin — Grandmaster, FIDE flag, Prodigy (board six)

Triveni Continental Kings

The Kings are the only two-time champions, in 2023 and 2024, and were runners-up in 2025. Alireza Firouzja, the most valuable player of the 2025 season, is the Icon. Wei Yi has played every season for the Kings and Alexandra Kosteniuk joined for the 2024 title run.

1. 1.Alireza Firouzja — Grandmaster, France, Icon (board one)
2. 2.Wei Yi — Grandmaster, China, Superstar, men's boards
3. 3.Aravindh Chithambaram — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, men's boards
4. 4.Zhu Jiner — Grandmaster, China, Superstar, women's boards
5. 5.Alexandra Kosteniuk — Grandmaster, Switzerland, Superstar, women's boards
6. 6.Pranav Venkatesh — Grandmaster, India, Prodigy (board six)

FYERS American Gambits

The Gambits finished sixth in 2025. Javokhir Sindarov, winner of the 2025 World Cup and the 2026 Candidates Tournament, is the new Icon, and Bibisara Assaubayeva stays from the 2025 squad.

1. 1.Javokhir Sindarov — Grandmaster, Uzbekistan, Icon (board one)
2. 2.Daniil Dubov — Grandmaster, Russia, Superstar, men's boards
3. 3.Nihal Sarin — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, men's boards
4. 4.Bibisara Assaubayeva — Grandmaster, Kazakhstan, Superstar, women's boards
5. 5.Sarasadat Khademalsharieh — International Master, Spain, Superstar, women's boards
6. 6.Marc'Andria Maurizzi — Grandmaster, France, Prodigy (board six)

Ganges Grandmasters

The Grandmasters finished third in 2023 and fourth in 2025, when they missed the final by one game point. Ian Nepomniachtchi was the Icon of the Balan Alaskan Knights in 2023 and Levon Aronian won the 2023 title with the Triveni Continental Kings; both play for the Grandmasters in 2026.

1. 1.Ian Nepomniachtchi — Grandmaster, Russia, Icon (board one)
2. 2.Levon Aronian — Grandmaster, United States, Superstar, men's boards
3. 3.Leinier Dominguez — Grandmaster, United States, Superstar, men's boards
4. 4.Polina Shuvalova — International Master, FIDE flag, Superstar, women's boards
5. 5.Stavroula Tsolakidou — International Master, Greece, Superstar, women's boards
6. 6.Leon Mendonca — Grandmaster, India, Prodigy (board six)

PBG Alaskan Knights

The Knights won the 2024 league stage, lost the final to the Kings and finished third in 2025. Viswanathan Anand joins as Icon after three seasons with the Ganges Grandmasters; Arjun Erigaisi, the Knights' most valuable player of 2025, and Kateryna Lagno stay.

1. 1.Viswanathan Anand — Grandmaster, India, Icon (board one)
2. 2.Arjun Erigaisi — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, men's boards
3. 3.Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus — Grandmaster, Türkiye, Superstar, men's boards
4. 4.Kateryna Lagno — Grandmaster, Russia, Superstar, women's boards
5. 5.Nino Batsiashvili — Grandmaster, Georgia, Superstar, women's boards
6. 6.Abhimanyu Mishra — Grandmaster, United States, Prodigy (board six)

CheQ Mumba Masters

The Masters were runners-up in 2023, when the final was decided by a sudden-death game, and finished fifth in 2025. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave has been the Icon in every season and Harika Dronavalli has played every season for the team; Shakhriyar Mamedyarov returns for a second year. The team plays as the CheQ Mumba Masters in 2026.

1. 1.Maxime Vachier-Lagrave — Grandmaster, France, Icon (board one)
2. 2.Shakhriyar Mamedyarov — Grandmaster, Azerbaijan, Superstar, men's boards
3. 3.Pranesh M — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, men's boards
4. 4.Carissa Yip — International Master, United States, Superstar, women's boards
5. 5.Harika Dronavalli — Grandmaster, India, Superstar, women's boards
6. 6.Bardiya Daneshvar — Grandmaster, Iran, Prodigy (board six)

Each profile shows the player's 2026 team standing and finished team matches, updated from the official broadcast during the event. Full standings are on the points table page and the match-day reports are on the reports page.

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