World Rapid & Blitz

The FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championship is one of the biggest and most exciting events on the chess calendar. Held annually since 2012, it brings together the strongest players on the planet for a week of fast-paced competition across four categories: Open Rapid, Women's Rapid, Open Blitz, and Women's Blitz. The time controls are 15 minutes plus 10-second increment for rapid, and 3 minutes plus 2-second increment for blitz.

The 2025 edition took place from December 25 to 31 at the Sports and Events Complex at Qatar University in Doha, organized by FIDE and the Qatar Chess Federation. The total prize fund exceeded one million euros, split between the Open and Women's sections. Magnus Carlsen dominated, winning both the Open Rapid and Open Blitz titles. Aleksandra Goryachkina won the Women's Rapid, and Bibisara Assaubayeva took the Women's Blitz crown for the third time in her career.

The championship uses a Swiss-system format, with 13 rounds for Open Rapid, 11 for Women's Rapid, 19 rounds for Open Blitz, and 15 for Women's Blitz. Tiebreaks are settled through playoff matches. The event draws hundreds of titled players from around the world and regularly attracts millions of online viewers through live broadcasts.

Past champions include some of the greatest names in chess history. The event has been held in cities like Berlin, Dubai, Riyadh, Warsaw, Almaty, St. Petersburg, New York, and now Doha. It was previously known as the King Salman World Rapid and Blitz Championships during its years in Saudi Arabia. The 2026 edition of the Team Championships is heading to Hong Kong.