The full lineup is set for Norway Chess 2026 and Norway Chess Women 2026. Once again, the tournaments will bring together many of the world’s strongest players for two weeks of elite competition in Oslo.

Both events feature six players in a double round-robin format with equal prize funds, continuing the tournament’s commitment to gender equality at the top level of professional chess. Every match produces a winner: if a classical game ends in a draw, the players immediately contest an Armageddon decider.

Norway Chess 2026

Magnus Carlsen (Norway)
World No. 1 since July 2011, Carlsen is a five-time classical World Champion, the reigning six-time World Rapid Champion and nine-time World Blitz Champion. He is also a record seven-time Norway Chess winner.

Vincent Keymer (Germany)
Germany’s No. 1 player, Keymer joins Norway Chess for the first time. Over the past year he has made a major breakthrough, climbing from World No. 20 in January 2025 to World No. 4 in January 2026. A runner-up at the 2022 FIDE World Rapid Championship, he has firmly established himself among the world’s elite.

Alireza Firouzja (France)
The youngest player ever to reach a 2800 rating, Firouzja became a grandmaster at 14 and the second-youngest player in history to surpass 2700 at 16. He has qualified for the FIDE Candidates twice, by winning the FIDE Grand Swiss 2021 and via the January 2024 rating list. Firouzja has competed in Norway Chess four times, finishing runner-up in 2020 and 2021.

Gukesh D (India)
The reigning World Champion, Gukesh won the 2024 Candidates Tournament and defeated Ding Liren to become the youngest undisputed World Champion in history. A grandmaster at 12, he is also the youngest player ever to cross the 2750 rating mark. At Norway Chess 2025, he scored his first classical victory over Magnus Carlsen.

Praggnanandhaa R (India)
One of the leading stars of India’s new generation, Praggnanandhaa qualified for the 2026 Candidates Tournament by winning the 2025 FIDE Circuit. A grandmaster at 12, he later became the youngest player ever to reach a FIDE World Cup final. He was part of India’s gold-medal team at the 2024 Chess Olympiad and has climbed as high as World No. 4. At Norway Chess 2024, he scored his first classical victory over Magnus Carlsen.

Wesley So (USA)
A former World No. 2, So has been a consistent presence at the top of elite chess for over a decade. He crossed the 2800 rating mark and recorded a 67-game unbeaten streak in classical play between 2016 and 2017. The Fischer Random World Champion (2019) and three-time U.S. Champion returns for his sixth appearance at Norway Chess.

Norway Chess Women 2026

Ju Wenjun (China)
The reigning Women’s World Champion, Ju has held the classical world title since 2018 and is a five-time champion. She is also a three-time world champion in rapid and blitz. Ju has played every edition of Norway Chess Women and won the inaugural tournament in 2024.

Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine)
The reigning Norway Chess Women champion returns, having won the title in 2025 after finishing runner-up in 2024. A three-time world champion in rapid and blitz, she is also a Women’s World Championship finalist and one of only a few women to surpass the 2600 rating mark.

Humpy Koneru (India)
A former challenger for the Women’s World Championship title, Koneru is one of the most accomplished players in women’s chess. She became the first Indian woman to earn the Grandmaster title at 15 and is a two-time Women’s World Rapid Champion. She will make her third appearance at Norway Chess Women.

Zhu Jiner (China)
Zhu Jiner makes her Norway Chess Women debut after a rapid rise from World No. 10 to World No. 2 among women in 2025. She won the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series 2024–2025 to qualify for the Women’s Candidates Tournament 2026. After competing in the Norway Chess Open last year, she now steps into the main event for the first time.

Divya Deshmukh (India)
Divya Deshmukh makes her Norway Chess Women debut after winning the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025, a result that earned her the Grandmaster title and qualification for the 2026 Candidates. At 19, she became the fourth Indian woman in history to achieve the GM title. She will be the youngest player to compete at Norway Chess Women since the event was launched in 2024.

Bibisara Assaubayeva (Kazakhstan)
The reigning Women’s World Blitz Champion, Assaubayeva has won the title three times (2021, 2022, 2025), becoming one of the strongest speed chess players of her generation. She first claimed the crown at 17, the youngest in history, and in 2025 earned the Grandmaster title and qualified for the Women’s Candidates 2026. She has also surpassed the 2500 rating mark.

The 2026 edition marks a new chapter as the event moves to Oslo after thirteen years in Stavanger.

May 25 – June 5, 2026
Deichman Bjørvika, Oslo

A new city. New matchups. The same world-class chess.