FIDE World Cup: Quarterfinals set after high-stakes Round 5 tiebreaks
The FIDE World Cup in Goa reached a boiling point today as four intense tiebreak matches unfolded, each with a place in the quarterfinals on the line. With no more second chances and yesterday’s classical draws setting the stage, today’s rapid and blitz battles brought drama, tension, and decisive outcomes across the board. Before the games began, the ceremonial first move was made for Lê Quang Liêm on Board 2, by Mr. Kedar J Naik, Member of the Legislative Assembly of Goa and Chairman of the Goa Tourism Development Corporation. Sam Shankland and Andrey Esipenko secured clean wins early in the first rapid portion against Daniil Dubov and Alexey Sarana respectively, while José Martínez defeated Pentala Harikrishna in the 10+10 rapid. Alexander Donchenko took Lê Quang Liêm into blitz territory before stamping his ticket to the next round. The quarterfinal lineup is now complete, and as the dust settled, four more players advanced with confidence and momentum on their side. Round of 16 tiebreaks results: Daniil Dubov 1-3 Sam Shankland Andrey Esipenko 2.5-1.5 Aleksey Grebnev José Martinez 3.5-2.5 Harikrishna Pentala Alexander Donchenko 4.5-3.5 Lê Quang Liêm Here’s how the day played out: Daniil Dubov – Sam Shankland In earlier interviews, Daniil Dubov made no secret of his strategy: to steer matches into tiebreaks. As a former World Rapid Champion, he felt this format played to his strengths. He also claimed that playing solidly with White and pushing with Black was the best way to capitalize on opponent’s overextending. But today, Sam Shankland flipped that plan on its head. Playing White in the first rapid game, he unleashed a novelty in the opening that led to an imbalanced position and early initiative on his side. With pressure mounting and the clock on his side, Shankland methodically limited Dubov’s options. Dubov, rarely short of creative ideas, struggled to find counterplay and instead fell into mistake after mistake, resulting in a convincing win for the American. The second game, a symmetrical English, saw early queen exchanges and a dry position that offered little for either side. A draw seemed impending, but Dubov overpushed in the endgame, losing the game and with it, his World Cup run came to an end. After the match, Shankland reflected on reaching the quarterfinals once before in 2021, a run that ended painfully at the hands of Sergey Karjakin in tiebreaks. “That’s haunted me ever since,” he admitted, adding that he now hopes to “banish the demon” for good. Andrey Esipenko – Alexey Grebnev It raised eyebrows when Andrey Esipenko took relatively quick draws in his classical games against Arseniy Grebnev. But if anyone doubted his strategy, the first rapid game removed all uncertainty. After a Petroff turned into a wild opposite-side castling battle, Esipenko seized the initiative by move 14 and was in complete control by move 20. It was a dominant win. The second game was a stark contrast and stretched all the way to move 145. Esipenko, now with Black, came out of the opening in a stable position. When it looked like both players were shuffling pieces with no progress, Esipenko made a bold choice to open up the queenside. This ambition backfired with a missed tactic, and suddenly Grebnev was up a pawn. But nerves kicked in and Grebnev misplayed the critical move order and let Esipenko seize control once more. The game soon turned into a technical endgame with each side down to a rook and Grebnev holding two pawns to Esipenko’s one. Esipenko, calm and prepared, navigated the position to a theoretical draw. Ironically, by move 145, both players had more time on their clocks than they did on move 50. With this match victory, Esipenko reached the deepest stage of a FIDE World Cup in his career. Harikrishna Pentala – José Martinez This was widely expected to be the longest match of the day, especially after the first two rapid games ended in uneventful draws. Much of the chatter centered around José Martínez’s reputation as a blitz expert, regularly beating the world’s best online. That meant Harikrishna’s best chances were in the rapid phase. In their first rapid game, the players entered a Richter-Rauzer Sicilian and while both appeared prepared, a few subtle inaccuracies left Harikrishna with isolated doubled pawns and passive pieces. Martínez, whose pieces worked seamlessly together, activated his rooks and pushed the kingside majority. The result was a smooth breakthrough and the first decisive game of their match – a must-win situation for Harikrishna in game two. In the second game, Harikrishna opted for an offbeat Caro-Kann with …Na6 on the third move, likely intending to avoid his opponent’s preparation. The opponents quickly entered unexplored territory and a critical position arose at move 21: Harikrishna quickly played 20…Nd3?, a move which our commentator Peter Leko exclaimed is a good move if it does not lose. Martinez had to see the important move 21.g4! and after 21…Qe4 suddenly 22.Bxf7+ gives White a huge advantage as capturing is not possible due to Ng5. Instead, Martinez played 21.Rad1 and the position became equal once more. In his post-game interview, he acknowledged seeing this line but decided to not enter the complications. Even so, the move g4 was played a few turns later, this time with full effect. Harikrishna erred instantly and Martinez seized a decisive advantage. With everything in hand, Jose chose a threefold repetition to seal the draw and punch his ticket to quarterfinals. In his interview, Martinez issued a spirited challenge to the field: “Those who want to go far in this World Cup have to get through me.” With his confidence and composure, it’s easy to see why he’s becoming one of the breakout names of the tournament. Alexander Donchenko – Lê Quang Liêm The last match of the day to finish briefly seemed like it would actually be the first match to finish after Alexander Donchenko struck first with the black pieces. After yesterday’s tense and heartbreaking draw where one misstep in the endgame cost Alexander
WCCC 2025: Greco crowned the smartest company in the world
The final day of the 2025 FIDE World Corporate Chess Championship saw Greco crowned Corporate Chess Champions and officially recognised as the smartest company in the world. After an intense round-robin phase, the competition moved to the semi-finals, where the four strongest teams – Morgan Stanley, Greco, Deloitte, and Google – faced off in knockout matches to decide the title. By the end of the afternoon, Greco had emerged victorious after a closely contested final against Morgan Stanley, bringing this year’s championship to a dramatic finish inside the FIDE World Cup hall in Goa. Excitement filled the room from the first move. Whether it was the thrill of representing their companies on a global platform, being within reach of a world title, or competing in the same hall as the World Cup, the players (all non-professionals) were fully focused. Almost every board featured titled competitors, and the chess was intense from the outset. Semifinals The semifinals featured Morgan Stanley vs Google and Greco vs Deloitte, with each match played over two rounds. In the event of a tie, a sudden-death game would have been used to decide the winner. In the match between Morgan Stanley and Google, the rating difference was clear, with Morgan Stanley outranking their counterparts by 200 to 500 points on every board. They confirmed their status as favourites by sweeping both rounds 4-0. With a perfect 8-0 match score and not a single half-point conceded, Morgan Stanley cruised into the finals. The encounter between Greco and Deloitte was more tightly contested. On paper, Greco had the edge thanks to the presence of GM Volodymyr Onyshchuk (2608) on the top board. They took the first match 3.5–0.5. As IM Sagar Shah observed on the live ChessBase India broadcast, the second match was significantly closer, with Deloitte holding a draw on board two and pushing on others. In the end, Greco repeated the same match score of 3.5-0.5 to book their spot in the finals. FINALS Morgan Stanley vs Greco The championship match between Morgan Stanley and Greco brought the two strongest teams of the event head-to-head. The matchups were finely balanced: Greco outrated Morgan Stanley on boards one and four, while Morgan Stanley held the rating edge on boards two and three. The opening round reflected this balance. GM Joshua Sheng struck first for Morgan Stanley, securing victory on board two. On the remaining boards, the clock played a significant role as the 10+3 time control led to scrambles in equal or better positions. The first round ended in a tense 2-2 draw, setting up a dramatic second match. GM Alojzije Janković, commenting on-site, compared some of the positions to those in the World Cup itself, noting the remarkably high level of chess across all boards. Despite the rating differences, the tides shifted throughout, leaving spectators and commentators on edge. In the end, Greco prevailed with a commanding 3.5-0.5 win in the second match, securing their place as 2025 World Corporate Champions. Deloitte vs Google In the bronze medal match, Deloitte took the early lead with a 3-1 win in the first round and repeated the same result in the second, securing third place in the championship. Their play was solid and consistent under pressure, earning them a podium finish behind the two tournament frontrunners. Game of the tournament One encounter stood out as a highlight of the entire championship. IM Sagar Shah called it the game of the tournament. In the position after 31…Qe4-Qc6, GM Joshua Sheng (White) was a piece down against IM Valeriy Grinev, but engines evaluated it as equal due to White’s activity. The commentators pointed out the stunning tactical opportunity: 32.Qxg7! The queen cannot be captured as 32…Rxg7 fails to 33.Rxd8#. The only defense for Black in this case would have been 32…Qe8, still holding equality. Instead, Sheng played 32.Rd6, and after 32…Qh1+, the game was drawn soon by three-fold repetition. Chess and business share a natural connection. Both require strategic planning, flexibility under pressure, and precise decision-making in complex situations. More companies are embracing chess not just as a recreational pastime, but as a tool to develop these skills among employees. Internal chess clubs, learning sessions, and corporate tournaments form part of a workplace culture built around challenge and collaboration. On today’s broadcast, WGM Keti Tsatsalashvili recalled visiting Meta’s offices after last year’s finals in New York, where she found chess boards in most rooms and learned the company even maintains its own internal rating system, an example of how deeply chess is woven into corporate environments. This movement toward chess in the workplace is evident at the FWCCC. Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa, who made the ceremonial first move yesterday, commented, “It’s great to see big companies like Google, Microsoft, Deloitte, Tech Mahindra all here… it shows how chess is expanding into the corporate world,” adding, “If companies find chess interesting and join, even in a small way, it’s great for the game.” As Morgan Gabor from Morgan Stanley shared, “We’ve been running an interoffice chess tournament for more than a decade now. Participation has grown, more than 1,000 players take part every year.” He added, “Chess teaches us to think ahead under time pressure, just like in business. It’s no surprise the game resonates so well with people in our field.” The trend goes beyond office walls. Leading companies now support chess at the highest levels, from Google sponsoring the 2024 FIDE World Championship Match, to Morgan Stanley supporting Judit Polgar’s Global Chess Festival, and Tech Mahindra’s continued backing of the Global Chess League – to name a few. The FIDE World Corporate Chess Championship reflects this growing synergy, bringing together teams who apply the same analytical thinking and teamwork on the chessboard that they use in their daily work. It’s a clear sign that modern business culture values intellectual challenge, community, and strategic excellence in equal measure. Companies interested in joining this movement and competing at next year’s FWCCC are encouraged to contact FIDE for early registration and participation details.