Chess

Chess is a two-player game of perfect information played on an 8×8 board with sixteen pieces each. White moves first and the aim is checkmate — attacking the enemy king so that no legal move escapes the threat. Competitive games are played on a clock, and many end in a draw rather than a win.

group

PLAYERS

1 v 1

schedule

DURATION

Classical 3–6 hrs · Rapid 25 min · Blitz 3–5 min

stadium

PLAYING AREA

8 × 8 board, 32 pieces

scoreboard

SCORING

1 for a win, ½ for a draw, 0 for a loss

HOW IT IS PLAYED

Core Rules

How the pieces move

Rooks move on ranks and files, bishops on diagonals, the queen on both, the king one square in any direction, and knights in an L that may jump over pieces. Pawns advance one square, or two from their starting rank, and capture diagonally.

Check and checkmate

A king under attack is in check and the player must remove the threat. If no legal move does so, it is checkmate and the game ends immediately. A player may never make a move that leaves their own king in check.

Castling

The king moves two squares toward a rook and the rook jumps to the far side. It is legal only if neither piece has moved, the squares between are empty, and the king is not in check nor passes through or lands on an attacked square.

En passant

A pawn advancing two squares past an enemy pawn on an adjacent file may be captured as if it had moved only one — but only on the very next move.

Promotion

A pawn reaching the far rank must be replaced immediately by a queen, rook, bishop or knight of the same colour, regardless of what pieces are already on the board.

Stalemate

If the player to move has no legal move and is not in check, the game is a draw. Stalemate is the most common way a winning position is thrown away.

Other draws

A game is drawn by threefold repetition of position, by the fifty-move rule when no pawn has moved and nothing has been captured, by insufficient mating material, or by mutual agreement.

Touch move

A touched piece must be moved if it has a legal move, and a touched enemy piece must be captured if legally possible. A piece released on a square stays there. Say 'j'adoube' before adjusting.

The clock

Each player presses the clock with the same hand that moved. Running out of time loses, unless the opponent has no possible mating material, in which case the game is drawn.

WATCH OUT

Fouls & Penalties

errorMaking an illegal move — the opponent gains extra time, and a second illegal move loses the game in most events.
errorTouching a piece and then moving another.
errorUsing notes, engines, or any electronic device in the playing hall.
errorDistracting or annoying the opponent, including repeated draw offers.
errorArriving after the default time set by the arbiter — forfeit.

WHO DECIDES

Match Officials

sportsArbiter — enforces the laws, rules on illegal moves and claims.
sportsChief arbiter — handles appeals, pairings and tournament regulations.
sportsDeputy arbiters — supervise the floor and the clocks.
sportsAppeals committee — hears protests against arbiter decisions.

GOVERNED BY FIDE · AICF

Play Chess On A Real Arena

Book a floodlit, pro-standard venue and put the rulebook to work.

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