How it works
You pick the team.
They play the chess.
You are the national selector of one country. Every week you choose five real players from that country. They play on Chess.com like they always do, and you score points from their games. Nobody has to sign up or even know they were picked.
01
Claim a country
Join a league and claim a free country: first come, first served, one country each. You can switch to another free one until the season starts.
02
Field five
Choose five of that country's active players, one per board, and name a captain. The captain scores double.
03
Watch them play
Their real Chess.com games that week turn into points. The team with more points wins the match.
Countries
One country each
By default it's first come, first served: you claim a free country when you join and can switch to another free one until the season starts. Join early for the strongest chess nations.
A league owner can choose a live draft instead. Everyone joins with a wishlist of up to 5 countries. When the owner starts the draft, the pick order is drawn at random and each manager has one minute to claim a country. The room updates live for everyone.
Not there, or the clock runs out? Your wishlist picks for you, then the strongest chess nation still free. Picking early is the only advantage, so the draw is the balance.
Your five boards
Stars at the top, hidden gems at the bottom
At the start of the season every country's active players are ranked by rating. Each board only accepts players from part of that list, so you can't just pick the five best.
Your captain scores double points. Choose someone who plays a lot and wins.
Which games count
Fair games only
Rated blitz and rapid
Bullet, daily, unrated and variant games (like Chess960) don't count. Bullet is closer to luck and easy to play in bulk. Duels can count it, though.
A fair opponent
The opponent's rating must be within 10% of your player's, so nobody farms points against beginners.
The first 10 games
Only the first 10 qualifying games of the week count, and at most 2 against the same opponent.
Someone has to move
A game where either player never made a move doesn't count.
Monday to Sunday
A gameweek runs Monday 00:00 to Sunday 23:59 (UTC). Rosters lock when it starts, with one substitution a week for a player who hasn't played yet: the newcomer scores only games after the swap.
Clean accounts
If Chess.com closes a player's account for fair-play violations, their points that week are wiped and you get a free replacement, even after the lock.
β Flags
Very short wins, and the same two players meeting 3 weeks in a row, get a flag so the league can take a look. Flagged games still count.
Points per game
Simple base, fun bonuses
+3
Win
+1
Draw
-1
Loss
Best 5 count
Bad days are forgiven
Out of up to 10 games, only the player's best 5 count. Playing more helps, but a losing streak won't sink you.
Bonuses
Extra points for style
Upset +3
Beat someone rated at least 5% higher.
Accuracy 90%+ +1
Check a game with Game Review on Chess.com: 90% accuracy or more scores +1. Games where you made fewer than 20 moves don't count.
Free accounts get one full Game Review a day. Premium checks every game (affiliate link, it supports this project).
Speed +1
Win by checkmate or resignation using a third of your clock or less. Winning on time doesn't count.
Clean sheet +5
4 wins in a row. A draw or loss resets the streak. Once per week.
Mate style bonus
The nastier the mate, the more it pays
When a player wins by checkmate, we look at the final position. If it's a famous pattern, you get extra points. Only the best pattern counts. Rare ones pay the most.
Smothered
+5
En passant
+5
Castling
+5
Underpromotion
+4
Double check
+3
Boden's
+3
Anastasia's
+3
Arabian
+3
Epaulette
+2
Pawn
+2
Back rank
+1
The orange ring is the mated king, the grey ones the pieces giving check. The en passant example is the famous Gundersen vs Faul game (1928).
The week
Lock Monday, final Tuesday
In a live league rosters lock on Monday 00:00 UTC and next week's roster opens straight away. Chess.com updates game archives with a delay, so scores refresh every few hours, marked Provisional, and become final on Tuesday 00:00 UTC.
A replay league uses weeks already played: the owner presses Advance week, so a whole season fits in one evening.
The table
Win the week, climb the table
Each week you play one other country. Your five players' points (captain doubled) against theirs.
3
Week won
1
Week drawn
0
Week lost
Table points per weekly match. Not the same as game points (+3 / +1 / -1) above.
Ties in the table go to the team with more fantasy points. Everyone plays everyone (round robin). Only final weeks count.
Weekly simul (Supersprint): a different format. A one-week league is the whole round robin in one week: no 1 v 1 fixture, your score is set against every other country's at once, a win 1, a draw Β½. With 16 countries that's a score out of 15, like 12Β½, provisional through the week. No playoffs. Equal scores: the country that joined the league first ranks higher.
Each of your boards opens to your line-up against that country's: both totals, whether you're winning the board, and every player's points (captain doubled). Rivals' line-ups stay hidden until the week locks.
Playoffs
Top 4, two weeks, one champion
Leagues with 6 or more teams save their last 2 gameweeks for the playoffs. After the regular season the top 4 play semi-finals, 1st v 4th and 2nd v 3rd, then the winners meet in the final.
The higher seed plays at home and goes through on a tie. The final's winner is the champion.
Duels
Any two players, a day to a week
Pick any two Chess.com usernames: you and a friend, or two players you like watching. They don't have to play each other, and scoring needs nobody's permission. If you play in it, it's a challenge: it counts in both duel records once the other player accepts on Sovereign Gambit. Until then, or if they decline, it's your unofficial duel. A duel lasts 1 day, 3 days or a week. Both score from their games in that window with the same rules as a league player: best 5 of the first 10 qualifying games.
Direct hit +3
Beat your rival in a game. Games against each other also skip the Β±10% rating rule, so a 1200 can take on a 2000.
Bullet, if you like
Tick Count bullet games for friends who mostly play bullet. Then 10 qualifying games per day of the duel count, best 5 score. Best over a single day.
Live while it runs
The score updates as they play, and it's final an hour after the duel ends. Start one now, next Monday, or replay last week for an instant result.
Featured every Monday
Hikaru vs Magnus, plus two more pairs of famous players, every week. Share any duel with its link.
Nations Cup
The algorithm picks the national teams
Every week each country fields its best five by form: average fantasy points over the last 4 weeks, same rules and same board limits as yours. The best form is captain. 3 Swiss rounds pair countries on similar results, then the top 8 play quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final.
Nobody manages these teams, so there's always something to watch: player, mate and upset of the week. Can your line-up beat the algorithm's?
Before round 1, pick the country you think will win the cup.
Your trophy cabinet
Every league leaves a mark
Your profile collects what you've won: league titles and podiums, your best week, the named mates your players delivered, and your duel record once your Chess.com username is linked.
The trophy marks winners, the crown your captain.
Quick answers
Do the players know they're in my team?
No. We only read public game data from Chess.com. Nobody is contacted.
What if my player doesn't play this week?
They score 0. Check the "games in the last 4 weeks" number when you pick.
Can two friends pick the same country?
Not in the same league. Each country has one selector: whoever claims it first (or picks it first in a live draft) gets it.
Can I change my roster during the week?
Mostly the next week's. Once a week starts its rosters are locked, with two exceptions: one substitution a week for a player who hasn't played a game yet (the newcomer's games count from the swap), and a free replacement when a player is closed for fair play.
Do I need a Chess.com account?
No. You only need one here. Link your Chess.com username in your profile to appear in your country's pool and to count your duels.
Is this made by Chess.com?
No. Sovereign Gambit is an independent fan project that uses Chess.com's public data.
Is it free?
Yes. If you enjoy it, βBuy me a coffeeβ at the bottom of the page helps pay for the server.