Chess Needs Better Beef: Giri Vs Nakamura Just Doesn't Cut It

There’s a new feud simmering in the chess world.

But don't get too excited. If you were hoping for a proper, table-flipping rivalry worthy of the game’s long, dramatic history, the spat between the 31-year-old GM Anish Giri and 38-year-old GM Hikaru Nakamura might leave you a little nonplussed.

Instead of going full Muhammad Ali or Larry Bird, these two kicked off their spat by arguing about analytics.

We were certainly not impressed. With both men preparing for the Candidates Tournament 2026—the absolute biggie event in the chess calendar this year—it all seemed a little... petty.

The roots of the row lie not in a rule violation, cheating controversy or handshake denied, but in a scheduling headache both have been caught up in. It's neither players' fault.

On one side is the prestigious Grand Chess Tour (GCT), the traditional over-the-board circuit backed by Rex Sinquefield's millions, the legend that is GM Garry Kasparov and several of the world’s top grandmasters who love to compete in it. Or at least collect the money on offer from it.

On the other is the newer, flashier Esports World Cup (EWP), which for the first time last year welcomed chess into its digital-first fold and is back not by millions, but Saudi Arabia's billions. Along with even an bigger prize pool, it has a very different audience. Not surprisingly, grandmasters look longingly at it.

This year, the EWP will be back to scoop up even more of the limelight. But unfortunately, the key dates for both the EWP and the GCT overlap. That means some elite players, contractually committed to the GCT, may be unable to compete in the EWP finals even if they qualify.

Enter Nakamura: streamer, grandmaster, and one of chess’s biggest online personalities with 3.1 million subscribers on YouTube.

In a video addressing the clash, the five-time U.S. champion argued the overlap might actually be good for the game. If established names skip the EWC, he suggested, it could create opportunities for fresh faces.

Then came the line that sparked outrage.

Some of those regular invitees, Nakamura implied, simply don’t bring in viewers.

That didn’t sit well with Giri.

The Dutch number-one, long known for his sharp wit on social media, fired back on X, accusing Nakamura of overstating his own importance.

It was classic Giri. We've seen his sharp wit rule social media for years. But Nakamura wasn’t about to let it slide.

He dismissed Giri's comparison as fundamentally flawed, arguing that his influence lies primarily in live streaming, not YouTube videos.

Even FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky barged into the conversation in an attempt to keep the peace.

At that point, the debate escalated beyond analytics and into accusations of personal ambition.

Giri suggested Nakamura’s comments weren’t innocent analysis, but a self-interested attempt to improve his own chances at the EWC.

It was a cutting suggestion: that Nakamura wasn’t just chasing views, but positioning himself competitively by diminishing his peers.

Nakamura responded with mockery rather than denial, laughing off the idea that he was orchestrating some grand strategic scheme.

"Chess players always going to think everything is about strategizing," he quipped.

Touché.

Hovering over the entire dispute, of course, is GM Magnus Carlsen, the biggest star in chess and someone who's had plenty of (much better) beef with both Giri and Nakamura in the past.

Now there's plenty to be said here about how chess is now not just about what goes on at the board, how who commands attention is important and how personality can matter almost as much as performance. But we won't go into that.

What we want to see is some good old hype before the Candidates. Giri, Nakamura and Carlsen are three stars with perhaps the biggest followings in chess, if they can't do it, who can?

When Giri and Nakamura sit down across from each other at the Candidates Tournament in Cyprus, everything is on the line. The event is massive for both of them. And FIDE's flagship tournament massive for chess as a whole.

Chess has seen truly legendary rivalries: bitter psychological wars, icy mind games, decades-long grudges. By comparison, this feud feels more like a disagreement over YouTube analytics.

It’s modern. It’s online. It’s a little petty. And it’s a long way from Conor McGregor swigging whiskey and threatening to smash your jaw on live TV. Maybe they're saving that for Cyprus.

But until then, in an era where chess is fighting for attention in a crowded entertainment landscape, even a modest feud is better than nothing.