Bet on World Chess Championship 2020 – A Strategic Battle of the Minds

Chess is one of the oldest board games in history that is a sport played sitting down. It has originated in India sometime around the 6th century AD. Ever since chess was invented, people have taken great interest in the game as it is a competition between the minds. Currently, the World Chess Champion is the Norwegian Grand Master Magnus Carlsen. The Norwegian is set to defend his world title in December against an opponent who is yet to be determined. The bet on the World Chess Championship is still open between several players as the challenger is not determined yet.

The Candidates Tournament

Throughout history, many great names and world champions have emerged and conquered the world of chess, such as, Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov. For example, Garry Kasparov was the reigning world chess champion for fifteen which makes him one of the greatest of all time. Throughout any champion’s reigning period, the strongest players around the world challenge them for the title. How to choose those challengers? To determine the deserved challenger for the throne, eight of the strongest players participate in a competition called the Candidates Tournament.

Many factors that play into who earns a place to join such tournament. For example, some players participate in the merit of their very high ratings. Furthermore, the organizer chooses to invite a wildcard into the tournament. The wild card is a player who played in at least two of the following tournaments (World Cup, Grand Swiss, and Grand Prix). Finally, the former World Championship runner-up guarantees a place in the Candidates Tournament. All in all, the tournament involves the current strongest players and a bet on world Chess championship winner is open to all players.

The Challenger to Bet on World Chess Championship

The 2020 Candidates tournament features the strongest chess players of this era. Fabiano Caruana sits on top of the list who qualified as the runner-up for the 2018 World Championship. Additionally, two of the strongest Chinese grandmasters are participating in the event. Ding Liren qualified as he was one of the two top finishers in the Chess World Cup 2019. While Wang Hao qualified as the winner of the Fide Grand Swiss Tournament 2019. In addition, two of the strongest Russian grandmasters also take part in the competition. Alexander Grischuk qualified as the winner of the FIDE Grand Prix 2019, and Ian Nepomniachtchi qualified as the runner-up of that same tournament. The wild card that the organizer chose to invite is Russian grandmaster Kirill Alekseenko who was subject to the eligibility criteria. Finally, grandmasters Anish Giri and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave qualified based on the high average rating.

All those players are in the top eleven highest-rated players around the world, except for the wildcard. The average rating of all eight players is 2773 which is a very high average. Therefore, each player has a very good chance of obtaining the world title in 2020.

Dethroning the Current Champion

Magnus Carlsen has been the reigning World Chess Champion for the past seven years. He is one of the strongest players that have ever played the game. Many people even consider him to be the greatest of all time. Carlsen will put his title on the line at the end of 2020 against the winner of the Candidates Tournament. Online Sportsbooks in the US place Magnus as a favorite for a Bet on World Chess Championship 2020. For example, Unibet puts Carlsen’s odds at 1.35. However, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave both have betting odds equal to 8. Even though there a slight gap between the betting odds, anything can happen in chess. For example, Magnus nearly lost his world title in 2018 if he hadn’t managed to win in the second to last round. Therefore, a bet on World Chess Championship 2020 is wide open for all players.

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