Chess lessons › Famous chess games
The world champions
From Steinitz in 1886 to Gukesh in 2024: the players who held the title, and how it passed.
The idea
The world title from Steinitz to Gukesh, and how it passed.
- Capablanca’s bishop takes the rook that shields Black’s king.
- After Kxg7 the knight checks on f5.
- Then the queen comes in on c7, and White is winning.
In a game: Play through the champions’ games, and stop to guess their moves before you see them.
The lesson
The first official World Championship match was played in 1886 in the United States, between Wilhelm Steinitz and Johannes Zukertort. Steinitz won, and became the first official world champion.
Since then the title has passed from one player to the next, nearly always in a match. This lesson follows it from Steinitz to the match of 2024, with a few moments from the champions’ own games.
Find the move
Zukertort against Steinitz, from their 1886 match. Steinitz has Black. His knight on h4 can give check. Find the check that starts an attack on the white king.
A hint
The knight on h4 gives check.
Show the answer
15... Ng2+
Ng2+! After Kf1 Nxe3+ fxe3 Bxg3, Black has given a knight for two pawns, but the white king has lost the right to castle and its pawn cover is broken. The engine rates Black better, and Steinitz won the game.
Here is how the attack began.
- 15... Ng2+ The knight gives check.
- 16. Kf1 The king steps aside, and White can no longer castle.
- 16... Nxe3+ The knight takes a pawn, again with check.
- 17. fxe3 White takes the knight.
- 17... Bxg3 Black takes a second pawn, and the white king has few pawns left in front of it.
A question
Who was the first official world champion?
Show the answer
Wilhelm Steinitz.
Right. Steinitz beat Zukertort in 1886, in the first official World Championship match.
Emanuel Lasker beat Steinitz in 1894 and kept the title for 27 years, until 1921, longer than anyone else. José Raúl Capablanca beat Lasker in Havana in 1921, and Alexander Alekhine beat Capablanca in Buenos Aires in 1927. Alekhine lost the title to Max Euwe in 1935, won it back in 1937, and was still champion when he died in 1946.
This position is from the 1927 match. Capablanca has White.
Find the move
White to move. The rook on g7 shields the black king. Take it.
A hint
The bishop on f6 takes on g7.
Show the answer
40. Bxg7
Bxg7! After Kxg7, the knight checks on f5 and the queen comes in on c7, and the engine rates White winning. Capablanca won this game, but Alekhine won the match.
A question
Which champion held the title for the longest time?
Show the answer
Emanuel Lasker.
Right. Lasker was champion for 27 years, from 1894 to 1921.
After Alekhine’s death, FIDE, the International Chess Federation, took over the title. In 1948 it held a tournament of five players, and Mikhail Botvinnik won it. Botvinnik lost the title to Vasily Smyslov in 1957 and won it back in 1958. In 1960 he lost it to Mikhail Tal, aged 23, and won it back in 1961. Tigran Petrosian beat Botvinnik in 1963, and Boris Spassky beat Petrosian in 1969.
This position is from the 1960 match. Tal has White.
Find the move
White to move. Black has traded off the dark-squared bishop, so the pawn on g7 has lost a defender. Bring the queen out to attack it.
A hint
The queen goes to g4.
Show the answer
7. Qg4
Qg4 attacks g7 at once. In the game Botvinnik played ...f5, and Tal’s queen went on to take the pawns on g7 and h7. Tal won this game.
Bobby Fischer of the United States beat Spassky in 1972, in Reykjavik in Iceland. It is one of the most famous matches ever played. Fischer lost the first game and did not turn up for the second. The third game, shown here, was his first win of the match. Fischer has Black.
- 11. Qc2 White plays a quiet queen move.
- 11... Nh5 Fischer puts his knight where White’s bishop can take it.
- 12. Bxh5 White takes the knight.
- 12... gxh5 Black’s h-pawns are doubled, but Black has kept both bishops. Fischer won the game.
A question
In which city was the 1972 match between Spassky and Fischer played?
Show the answer
Reykjavik.
Right. The match was played in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland.
Fischer did not defend his title in 1975, and Anatoly Karpov became champion without playing a match. In 1985 Garry Kasparov beat Karpov. He was 22, the youngest world champion up to then.
In 1993 Kasparov and his challenger Nigel Short played their match outside FIDE, and for 13 years there were two world champions. Vladimir Kramnik beat Kasparov in London in 2000. FIDE’s champions in those years included Viswanathan Anand, who won its title in 2000, and Veselin Topalov, who won it in 2005.
A question
In 2006 the two titles became one again, in a match between the two champions. Who won it?
Show the answer
Vladimir Kramnik.
Right. Kramnik beat Topalov in 2006, and from then on there was one world champion again. This board shows the end of a game Kramnik won in that match.
Anand became world champion by winning a tournament in Mexico City in 2007, and then defended the title in matches, first against Kramnik in 2008. Magnus Carlsen of Norway beat Anand in Chennai in 2013. Carlsen chose not to defend the title in 2023, and Ding Liren of China won it by beating Ian Nepomniachtchi.
In 2024, in Singapore, Gukesh Dommaraju of India beat Ding. He was 18, the youngest undisputed world champion in history.
A question
Which list of champions is in the right order?
Show the answer
Steinitz, Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine.
Right. Steinitz in 1886, Lasker in 1894, Capablanca in 1921 and Alekhine in 1927.
A question
Which of these players was the youngest when he became world champion?
Show the answer
Gukesh Dommaraju.
Right. Gukesh was 18 when he beat Ding Liren in 2024.