Potpourri: Money in Chess, Except for the World Championship. Plus: Watch Out!
News you can use.
Let’s start with something grim: with about 85 days to go until the scheduled date, no site has been determined for the World Chess Championship match between Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren. Hopefully this won’t turn into the non-match between Garry Kasparov and Alexei Shirov from the late ‘90s. Also relevant: is there a sponsor?
Lest you think there’s no money in chess, however, you can see what kind of coin your favorite players are making, at least from their tournament play. (How much the top streamers make is another matter.)
Watch out! Maxime Vachier-Lagrave forgot to leave his wristwatch behind before entering the playing hall at the World Rapid & Blitz Championship, and could have been forfeited. (And maybe not only for the game, but for the tournament as well.) (Does USCF have a ban on smartwatches yet? If not, they really, really should.)