D Gukesh: The feud between FIDE and Magnus Carlsen’s Freestyle Chess Players Club (FCPC) is intensifying, adding more drama to the ongoing controversy. In December of last year, FIDE officially recognized FCPC and its Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour.

However, accusations quickly surfaced that the chess body had been pressured into this agreement, fearing the consequences of Carlsen’s potential withdrawal from the year-end Rapid and Blitz Championship.

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Carlsen’s Jeans Scandal and Fallout

The tension heightened when Carlsen found himself embroiled in a jeans scandal during the Rapid Championship in New York. Carlsen made a violation of the dress code by FIDE by wearing jeans. He was fined because of this and was not paired for the rest of the day after he refused to change. In response, the Norwegian withdrew from the tournament and accused FIDE of threatening FCPC players with exclusion from the World Championship cycle if they participated in the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam.

FIDE Accuses Carlsen and Nakamura of Causing Divisions

In January 2025, FIDE raised the stakes by claiming that Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura had caused schisms in the chess world through their association with FCPC. FIDE also said that it had accepted FCPC “out of goodwill.”

Nakamura Calls for a Boycott of FIDE

World No. 3 Hikaru Nakamura responded by posting a video on YouTube, criticizing FIDE and urging top players to boycott the international chess body. He recommended that players join tournaments like the Freestyle Grand Slam Tour, which offers higher prize money than FIDE-sanctioned events.

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