Carlsen v Nepomniatchi 2021 World Championship

[Chris Rice]

Due to start next week in Dubai with the opening ceremony on Wednesday November 24th and Game 1 on Friday 26th. All the games take place at 12.30pm London time. Here is the schedule.

Here are the official scoresheets:



Nepo has been a difficult opponent for Carlsen in the past but Carlsen always seems to find a way to win and is the heavy favourite with the bookies.

[LawrenceCooper]

It might have been easier on the players to ask for first names instead

[JustinHorton]

Where's the space for them to write down the opponent's grade

[Mike Gunn]

Why is there khaki shading in of the area where black writes his moves (it seems unnecessary).

[John Upham]

Where's the space for them to write down the opponent's grade

The box to record the name of the opening is missing.

[IM Jack Rudd]

The box to record the name of the opening is missing.

They've got one thing right, then.

[John Upham]

The box to record the name of the opening is missing.

They've got one thing right, then.

Indeed!

[Reg Clucas]

And what about the diagram of the final position?

[Matt Mackenzie]

Let's just have a win in the Classical phase this time eh

(the last match wasn't actually so bad, save for that one little detail)

[Chris Rice]

The scoresheets are only part of the work that the branding agency hired by FIDE, THE Morillas Branding Agency, a Spanish international agency that has worked with Leo Messi, Davis Cup, FC Barcelona, and Nike Spain has been doing apparently.

"Developing a strong brand for an event like the FIDE World Championship match can help build credibility, engagement, recognition, and support. This will benefit not only the event, but FIDE in general, and chess as a whole", said David Llada, who oversaw the creative process.
Event branding and design create the look and feel of an event. This comprises printed materials, signage and structural elements, video, digital assets, and sonic branding. In the case of a world championship match, even the smallest elements, like the scoresheets, are branded.
Of course, merchandising is a crucial part of the branding, and very soon you will be able to buy memorabilia from Dubai 2021 at the official website

"What made this project special is the mix of emotions around the board. Chess is a vibrant and exciting universe where enigma after enigma emerges a very proprietary concept of victory that we have tried to respect and represent to the fullest," said CCO Alex Gobern.
"Having the opportunity to contribute to a project capable of uniting and inspiring the world like this is simply amazing. Looking forward to meeting the FIDE team in Dubai next week!", said Marc Morillas, CEO of the company, who was personally involved in the creative process."

[Roger de Coverly]

The scoresheets are only part of the work that the branding agency hired by FIDE, THE Morillas Branding Agency, a Spanish international agency that has worked with Leo Messi, Davis Cup, FC Barcelona, and Nike Spain has been doing apparently.

Notwithstanding their recent burst of publicity, Agon or World Chess is presumably out of the picture, or at least a very low profile. Presumably with all the events run in conjunction with FIDE over the last couple of years, chess.com will be allowed to cover the match without being threatened by legal action. I not expecting ecforum to be told not to relay and discuss the match whilst games are in progress either.

[Chris Rice]

Official table:

[Mike Gunn]

Gosh, it really makes you wonder how the World Chess Championship has managed to survive for so long in the absence of "strong branding"

[Nick Burrows]

The table is awful

[Kevin Thurlow]

Luckily, the players cannot see the adverts. I have to say the Fischer - Spassky tables I have seen in Iceland look rather more solid and well-made.