Introduction
Chess ranks highly among the most popular sports in the world and it’s popularity has been steadily increasing over the years mainly due to factors which include the growth of technology such as social media, streaming platforms, and online gaming platforms. Chess also ranks highly as one of the most lucrative career paths as many chess players in our current era have been able to achieve great levels of financial success through their accomplishments in chess. In this article I will explore some of the richest chess players throughout history as well as some of the richest chess players today and how chess compares to other sports in terms of it’s financial compensation.
How Chess Players Make Money
Chess players make money in numerous ways which includes through sponsorship deals, endorsement deals, advertisement deals, tournament prize money, coaching, authorship, business, investments, streaming, and media appearances.
Chess players can make money through numerous avenues asides from just winning tournament award money although chess tournament winnings usually make up a significant percentage of a chess players income in most cases. The most popular chess tournaments have extremely high rewards that are awarded to chess players based on their performance. Chess tournaments can be either national or international, national chess tournaments feature the best chess players from specific countries and usually have smaller rewards whereas international tournaments feature the best chess players from around the world and typically have much larger rewards. Chess players can earn anywhere from 100 dollars to 2 thousand dollars for winning or coming in second place in less prestigious chess tournaments and can earn from tens of thousands to over 2 million dollars for winning or coming in second place in the most prestigious chess tournaments such as the world chess championship. Sponsorship, endorsement, and advertisement deals are some other ways that most high-level chess players can earn money from chess and these deals can be just as lucrative or even more lucrative than winning prize money from tournaments. Companies that are promoting products and services often reach out to popular chess players so that they can collaborate with them over a certain period of time. Chess players can earn hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars in return for their collaboration with a company depending on the size of the company and the popularity of the chess player.
A large percentage of chess players also venture into either coaching, authorship, business, and media production or a combination of these fields. Coaching, authorship, business, and media production are career paths that have always been lucrative however they have been supercharged by the introduction of the internet which has allowed chess players to generate significant incomes regardless of their location whilst also allowing them to serve a much larger audience. Today chess players can easily create courses online and share their secrets to success in chess or offer coaching and mentorship services to a select group of students anywhere in the world. Many chess players have authored books on chess as well as autobiographies on their journey in chess which are extremely helpful for aspiring chess players as well as chess enthusiasts that enjoy reading about chess. Business, which includes selling coaching and mentoring services as well as chess products is another way in which chess players can make money. There are numerous products that chess players can provide to the global chess community such as chess sets, chess boards, chess pieces, chess accessories, chess apparel and much more which can also be supplied to chess enthusiasts regardless of their geographic location. Lastly, media production is another career path that chess players can make money from by providing listeners around the world with chess related content such as chess news, chess history and chess education on podcasts or on streaming platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.
The Richest Chess Players in The History of Chess
There are numerous chess players throughout the history of chess that have earned significant sums of money from their success in chess. Some of the richest chess players in the history of chess include Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Viswanathan Anand, Judit Polgar, Teimour Radjabov, Levon Aronian, Maxime Vachier Lagrave, Fabiano Caruana, Vladimir Kramnik, Magnus Carlsen, and Hikaru Nakamura.
There are millions of chess players around the world that play chess for fun however only a small percentage of chess players have been able to make a living from playing chess at the professional level. Most professional chess players make a significant portion of their money from competing in and winning high level chess tournaments which have extremely high pay outs that range from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars. The most prestigious chess tournament with the highest cash payout is the world chess championship which takes place every two years with prize rewards that often exceeds one million dollars for both the winner and the loser of the tournament. Some other prestigious chess tournaments with significant prize rewards include the FIDE world cup, the chess Olympiads, the FIDE grand prix, the Tata steel chess tournament, the world rapid chess championship, the London chess classic, the Sinquefield cup, the candidate’s tournament, Chess.com’s champions chess tour, and the Amber chess tournament. These prestigious chess tournaments are held regularly, some biennially and some take place yearly. The strongest chess players in the world usually compete in multiple chess tournaments which enables them to earn hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars per year on average depending on their performance.
Before the 21st century and the professionalisation of chess with the introduction of the international chess governing body FIDE chess players were less able to earn a living from chess. However, the earning potential of professional chess players in the 21st century has increased significantly. Bobby Fischer who was one of the most famous chess players in the world in the 20th century had a net worth of around 2 to 3 million dollars at the time of his death in 2008. Garry Kasparov, the world chess champion from 1985 to 2000, has a net worth of 6 million dollars on the lower end of the spectrum and 50 million dollars at the higher end of the spectrum which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through coaching, real estate and a series of sponsorship, endorsement, and advertising deals with some of the most popular international brands. Anatoly Karpov was the world chess champion from 1975 to 1985, after losing the 1985 world chess championship title to Garry Kasparov in 1985, with a net worth of 5 million dollars on the lower end of the spectrum and 50 million dollars on the higher end of the spectrum which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, business ventures, public appearances at chess related events, authorship, and politics. Viswanathan Anand was the world chess champion from 2007 to 2015 with a net worth of 3 to 5 million dollars which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through, sponsorship and endorsement deals, authorship, coaching, and various successful investments. Judit Polgar is a Hungarian chess grandmaster and one of the only women in chess to have been a serious candidate for the 2005 world chess championship with a net worth of around 3 to 5 million dollars which was earned primarily through her success in chess tournaments. Teimour Radjabov is an Azerbaijani chess grandmaster who was one of the youngest chess players in the world to earn a grandmaster title in 2001 at the age of 14 with a net worth of 5 to 20 million dollars which was earned mostly through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, appearances at chess related events, coaching, streaming, and various investments.
Levon Aronian is an Armenian American chess prodigy who earned the grandmaster title in 2000 at the age of 17 with a net worth of around 3 to 5 million dollars which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, appearances at chess related events, streaming, coaching, and authorship. Maxime-Vachier-Lagrave is a French chess prodigy who earned the grandmaster title in 2005 at the age of 14 and the former world blitz champion with a net worth of around 5 million dollars which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, streaming, coaching, appearances at chess related events, and various investments. Fabiano Caruana is an Italian American chess grandmaster and the reigning United States chess champion with a net worth of around 10 to 13 million dollars which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, streaming, coaching, appearances at chess related events, and authorship. Vladimir Kramnik is a Russian chess grandmaster who was the world chess champion from 2000 to 2007 with a net worth of around 4 to 5 million dollars which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, appearances at chess related events, coaching, chess software development, and various investments. Magnus Carlsen is a Norwegian chess prodigy who earned the grandmaster title in 2004 at the age of 13, who is also a five-time world chess champion and the reigning world rapid chess champion, world blitz chess champion and the chess world cup champion with a net worth of around 25 to 50 million dollars which was earned primarily through his success in chess tournaments as well as through sponsorship and endorsement deals, business ventures, media appearances and appearances at chess related events, streaming, and coaching. Hikaru Nakamura is an American chess prodigy who earned the grandmaster title in 2003 at the age of 15, as well as being a five-time US chess champion and the reigning world Fischer random chess champion with a net worth of around 50 million dollars which was earned through chess tournaments, sponsorship and endorsement deals, streaming, media appearances and appearances at chess related events, authorship, coaching, as well as through various business ventures and investments.
The Richest Chess Players Today
The richest chess players today have net worths in the tens of millions of dollars and includes chess players such as Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Teimour Radjabov, Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, and Magnus Carlsen. All the wealthiest chess players have made millions through their success in prestigious chess tournaments as well as through collaborations with major brands via sponsorship and endorsement deals, streaming, authorship, media appearances, coaching, business ventures, and investments.
Chess players such as Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Teimour Radjabov, Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, and Magnus Carlsen have competed in numerous prestigious chess tournaments during their careers such as the London chess classic, the Tata Steel chess tournament, the FIDE Grand Prix, the chess world cup, the Sinquefield cup, the chess Olympiads, the Amber chess tournament, the world rapid chess tournament, the world blitz chess tournament, the candidates tournaments, and the world chess championship, winning many of them in the process which has enabled them to earn millions of dollars over the course of their careers. The prize rewards for the most prestigious chess tournaments range from tens of thousands of dollars to millions of dollars and often lead to opportunities for chess players to collaborate with major brands to secure sponsorship and endorsement deals which are typically worth millions of dollars. For instance, the Indian chess grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi recently signed a five-year sponsorship deal with the high frequency trading company Quantbox for 1.5 million dollars due to his success in numerous chess tournaments and his rising popularity among the global chess community. Many of the wealthiest chess players in the world are also former world chess champions or have competed in the candidate’s tournament which is a testament to their level of skill in chess and an excellent example of what is required to become wealthy through chess.
Some of the brands that have partnered with chess players throughout the years include IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Adidas, ChessBase, Playchess.com, Alkaloid, Cresco Capital, Liberty Science Center, Gazprom, G-STAR RAW, Unibet, Simonsen Vogt Wiig, Nordic Semiconductor, Puma, Isklar, Team SoloMid, Quantbox, Optiver, Chess.com, Caplin Systems, Chessable, Chess and Bridge, The John Robinson Youth Chess Trust, Hull City Council, Hull Culture and Leisure, Winchester College, St Catherine’s Bramley, The Chess Trust, J.C. Flowers, The Friends of Chess, J.P. Morgan, Coca Cola, MPL, Goldman Sachs, Google, Blackrock, Horlicks, Vodafone, and many others. Sponsorship and endorsement deals are beneficial for chess players, the brands that provide them as well as the chess industry as a whole because they create opportunities for chess players to generate additional streams of income, enable chess players and brands to gain greater levels of exposure and provide funding for chess related events and tournaments. The internet has played a crucial role in allowing chess players to monetise their skills in chess through streaming, coaching, and authorship. For example, chess players such as Levy Rozman, Hikaru Nakamura and Magnus Carlsen are extremely active on social media and streaming platforms such as YouTube and Twitch where they teach chess and provide commentary on popular chess games, which makes up a significant portion of their incomes in addition to their incomes from tournaments and sponsorship and endorsement deals.
Vladimir Kramnik, Garry Kasparov, and Magnus Carlsen have all ventured into the technology sector to merge their interest in technology with their expertise in chess. Vladimir Kramnik, in an attempt to bring creativity back into chess has partnered with the artificial intelligence company, DeepMind, to explore new and exciting variants of chess. Garry Kasparov has been heavily involved in the technology sector since the early 1990’s and has worked with companies such as Intel, IBM, and Microsoft. Garry Kasparov is also one of the first chess players to play against IBM’s chess computer, DeepBlue. Magnus Carlsen is a co-founder of the Play Magnus computer chess mobile app which was released to the public in 2014 and acquired by chess.com for around 83 million dollars in 2022. The development of chess software is becoming more and more popular among chess players, and it provides an excellent opportunity for chess players to diversify their income streams and gain exposure to the fast-growing technology sector. Many of the wealthiest chess players also generate income from businesses and investments outside of chess such as real estate, stocks, and bonds. Hikaru Nakamura is a fan of investing and trading stocks, index funds and cryptocurrencies and has stated that he is able to make more money from his investments than from his career as a chess player.
The Earning Potential in Chess Compared to Other Sports
The earning potential in chess is significantly lower than in other professional sports due to the fact that most chess players main source of income are from chess tournaments and their performance in chess tournaments, many of which only occur once every two years whereas in other professional sports, players are paid an annual salary. The average salary of a chess grandmaster pales in comparison to the salaries of professionals in other sports such as basketball, soccer/football, baseball, rugby, and tennis.
The earning structure in chess differs considerably from the earning structure of other sports which has a massive impact on the earning potential of professional chess players. Professional chess players typically earn the majority of their income from competing in chess tournaments, most of which occur only every two years whereas professional athletes in other sports are usually paid a regular salary. Although some chess players are able to earn additional streams of income through sponsorship and endorsement deals, and media appearances, these opportunities are typically reserved for the most elite chess players much like the high payouts that the best chess players can earn from winning chess tournaments. Most grandmasters in chess take up coaching to earn a living from their skills which can often be much more lucrative than competing in chess tournaments, especially when the payout does not justify the time and effort that’s required to prepare for a chess tournament. Additionally, chess is a zero-sum game as even if you perform well in chess tournaments and are able to secure a decent sum of money for your efforts there will still be many chess players that walk away with nothing to show for their time and effort spent in preparation for their participation in chess tournaments. Coaching enables professional chess players to earn a stable income from their skills however the amount of money chess players can earn from coaching is dependent on their level of skill.
Chess players can earn anywhere from 50 dollars to 1000 dollars per hour from coaching which is significant but pales in comparison to the salary’s professionals in other sports can expect to earn. For example, professional NBA players in the United States earn an average of over 8 million dollars annually, soccer/football players in the United Kingdom on average earn as much as 60,000 pounds per week but can earn as much 200 million euros per year, which is the case for Cristiano Ronaldo who currently earns 617,000 dollars per day playing for the Saudi Arabian soccer/football team Al Nassr. Professional baseball players earn on average over 4 million dollars per year, professional rugby players in the United Kingdom earn on average over 170,000 pounds per year, and professional tennis players earn on average over 180,000 dollars per year but can earn as much as 28 million pounds per year which is the case for the highest ranked tennis player in the world Novak Djokovic. The average chess grandmaster currently earns between 42,000 dollars per year to 75,000 dollars per year from tournament winnings however chess grandmasters can earn much more by taking advantage of other income generating methods such as coaching, content creation, authorship, as well as through business and investment.
Factors That Contribute To Wealth In Modern Chess
The earning potential of chess players in the 21st century have increased significantly and is much higher than the earning potential of chess players of previous centuries. Some of the factors that have positively impacted the opportunities to generate wealth in modern chess include social media, streaming platforms, online chess platforms, chess engines, and the professionalisation of the chess industry as a whole.
Modern technology, which continues to evolve, has completely transformed the landscape of chess as well as many other industries which has enabled the chess players of the 21st century to accumulate wealth on a scale that dwarfs the opportunities to accumulate wealth that were available to chess players of previous centuries. Chess players such as Howard Staunton, Thomas Bright Wilson, and Joseph Henry Blackburne as well as many others played an instrumental role in helping to structuralise the chess industry which made it possible for the chess industry to develop into the thriving industry it is today. The lack of organisation that chess had before the contemporary era prevented many chess players from making a living from chess and as a result many chess players had to explore other avenues outside of chess to earn a living. The life of Howard Staunton is a testament to this fact as he was one of the best chess players in the world during the 19th century however much of his income was earned through his writings on chess for the Illustrated London News as opposed to playing chess. Many 19th and 20th century chess players also struggled to earn a living from playing chess and had to take up various professions outside of chess in order to generate their incomes.
Chess players of the 21st century are on average much wealthier than the chess players from the past which is mainly due to the technology that’s available to 21st century chess players. Social media, streaming platforms, online chess platforms, chess engines, and the professionalisation of the chess industry due to the introduction of the international chess governing organisation FIDE in 1924 are some of the main factors that have impacted the opportunities to generate wealth in the 21st century. Although the ability to generate wealth through competing in chess tournaments is available to all chess players, only the elite chess players with the greatest level of skill in chess have been able to earn significant sums of money through their success in chess tournaments. However, the internet has enabled all chess players to monetise their skills by creating content and utilising platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Twitch. Content creation has become one of the major sources of income for chess players and many chess players are able to make much more money from content creation than they are able to make from playing chess. Chess players today are also able to generate significant incomes from creating courses which are accessible to millions of people around the world as well as by competing in online chess tournaments that occur much more frequently than over the board chess tournaments.
Conclusion
There are many chess players today that have been able to amass large sums of wealth from chess however the number of chess players that have been able to generate wealth is much lower than the number of athletes that have been able to generate wealth in other sports. The earning structure in professional chess is one of the main reasons for the large distinction between the earning potential in chess compared to other sports as chess players are not paid a salary for playing chess whereas athletes in other sports are. The wealthiest chess players today such as Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura have net worths of up to 50 million dollars whereas top athletes in other sports such as soccer/football, tennis, and basketball are typically paid much more, are paid regularly, and as a result have much higher net worths. Whilst chess is not the highest paying profession in the world it is still extremely rewarding both financially and emotionally especially for chess players who are genuinely passionate about the game.
