Chess to make headway into Web 3.0 as FIDE partners with Avalanche

The International Chess Federation, popularly known by its French acronym FIDE, has struck a partnership with Avalanche to introduce chess into the sphere of Web 3.0, Avalanche announced on Dec. 23. Founded in 1924, FIDE links 200 national chess associations into one international federation and oversees the World Chess Championships.

According to the Federation, the ancient board game of Chess, originating in India, has evolved over the centuries and gone digital. Over 100 million people play chess online and compete in over 25 million digital chess matches daily. Introducing chess into Web 3.0 will mark the next stage of evolution in the game, FIDE believes.

As part of the partnership, Avalanche (AVAX) and Core, a self-custody wallet developed by Ava Labs, will feature as sponsors at FIDE tournaments. This includes the World Rapid and Blitz 2022 championship starting on Dec. 25 in Kazakhstan.

More importantly though, Avalanche and Core will invest in FIDE’s chess-related product development on the network, according to the press release. Ava Labs, the development company behind Avalanche, will work with FIDE to use blockchain to solve challenges in chess and reduce operational inefficiencies for players and federations. The partnership also aims to improve game integrity, onboard new generations of players, and boost innovation.

FIDE will use Avalanche’s subnet technology to create on-chain products such as on-chain player rating and tournament data management, a historical game explorer, and issuing prize pools and digital trophies on Avalanche. The team will also work on adding personalized game experiences on-chain, Avalanche said.

Emil Sutovsky, CEO of FIDE, stated in the press release:

“Chess is a unique sport, and this cooperation will allow us to unify our community and strengthen the ties between players, clubs, federations and FIDE.”

Ava Labs CEO Emin Gün Sirer added:

“The possibilities created by bringing chess on-chain are about as limitless as the game of chess itself… On Avalanche, players all over the world will experience chess like never before.”

It is worth noting, however, that this partnership is not the first time FIDE took a step into Web 3.0. In 2021, FIDE claimed to be the first international sports federation to launch its own non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace, in partnership with TON Labs.