Chess fanatics took over the Friends House, London, as enthusiasts from across the globe gathered for the second season of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League.

Global Chess League (GCL) is the chess world’s first official and the largest franchise-based competition. It boasts of being the only professional league in the world that has both men and women players on the same team.

Building on the sounding success of season one, the second season was no different. Millions tuned in from all over the world while 3000+ people attended the event live as the six franchises went head-to-head over 10 days with the venue going houseful on multiple days.

The trophy for season two was first unveiled on August 1, at the Tech Mahindra campus in Pune with Indian chess icon Vishwanathan Anand unveiling it alongside Tech Mahindra’s CMO and GCL Chairperson Mr Peeyush Dubey. The full line-up for the season was announced shortly after as mega stars including both men and women World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen and Yifan Hou were confirmed. The teams were shuffled following the players draft in Delhi as some big transfers added to the excitement of the league.

Tech Mahindra CEO Mr Mohit Joshi hosted a pre-tournament dinner on October 2, for all the players and other stakeholders before the league commenced on October 3. Mahindra Group chairman Mr Anand Mahindra graced the finals and made the ceremonial ‘First Move’ for the first match of the finals.

It was the defending champions Triveni Continental Kings who managed to retain their title, overpowering PBG Alaskan Knights in the grand finale on October 12. The Knights were heavy favourites led by GCL debutant and Dutch GM Anish Giri. But the Kings led by 21-year-old Iranian icon GM Alireza Firouzja, also a GCL debutant, ensured the trophy remained with the team in pink. Much like the game of chess, it was the King(s) who remained standing at the very last.

Indian young gun Nihal Sarin and Polish woman GM Alina Kashlinskaya shone the brightest among the galaxy of chess stars as the pair picked up the ‘Male Player of the Tournament’ and ‘Woman Player of the Tournament’ award respectively. The awards were handed out by Mr Mahindra and FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich. They were joined at the podium by Bollywood icon Mr John Abraham, Mr Joshi, Amara Partners founder Mr Parag Shah, Mr Dubey and GCL CEO Sameer Pathak.

Tech Mahindra ensured the tech experience of visitors and fans was stellar. The GCL metaverse allowed fans to virtually visit the venue and explore it fully to get an idea on where the real action took place with different lucrative also dropped along the way which included selecting and creating virtual avatars.

The tournament also saw special appearances from renowned chess players, various industry stalwarts, celebrities, and athletes from other sports as the perfect combo of technology and chess brought everyone together.

Global Chess League stayed true to its promise of boosting the sport globally as fans got a chance to play with Grandmasters in the common areas. The GMs also made sure that after every match they signed autographs and clicked pictures with the fans who wholeheartedly cheered and supported them.

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