India College Chess Championship Is Back in 2026!
We are excited to announce the India College Chess Championship: Spring 2026 (ICCC), the fourth edition of Chess.com's exclusive tournament for our Indian college students. The first three seasons attracted, on average, more than 200 teams and 1,100 players, a testament to the league's success among Indian students.
The first week of the Spring 2026 season will start on January 22, 2026. The season then lasts seven weeks, ending in March, with the Playoffs following from March 19 to April 2. Once again, the ICCC will feature a prize fund of ₹15,00,000 and premium Chess.com memberships.
If you're an Indian college student who loves chess and would like to represent your school, click the button below to register for the competition! Registration closes on January 12, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. IST, so make sure you don't miss the deadline.
Team captains and coaches can find all registration instructions below.
Last season, the SRM Institute of Science and Technology completed a hat-trick of victories, clinching the Autumn edition and the first-place prize of ₹3,00,000 in October 2025. Considering their team line-up filled with grandmasters and international masters, they are the hot favorites again!
Time scrambles, surprise upsets, tricky positions, and a lot of adventures—team events bring a unique flavor and guarantee plenty of excitement. We hope you make the most of this opportunity, created exclusively for Indian students.
If you're a team captain or coach and would like to register your team, you can find all the registration details in the instructions below.
To register, you must complete the following steps:
Team Captains
- Register your team on PlayVS.
- If you need help registering, check out this instructional video.
- If your school is not on the PlayVS platform, you must make a request to get it added either by emailing Joe Navarro at joe.navarro@playvs.com or by asking an admin on the CCL Discord server. Please only do this if you are over the age of 18 and are the representative of your college chess team.
- Fill out Chess.com's registration form.
All Other Players
Once your team captain has registered your team, follow the steps below:
- Register on PlayVS and join your team.
- Sign the fair play agreement.
Note that each team must have at least four players, with the possibility of adding up to four additional team members as substitutes.
If you are unsure if your school has a team, you can find all the schools, teams, captains, and players from last season here and contact them through our Discord. If you are sure your school doesn't have a team, and you would like to connect with other players from your school to form a team, you can contact us at ICCC@Chess.com, so we can connect you with other players from your school to form a team.
You can find the full regulations and prize information here.
The India College Chess Championship is inspired by the success of the Collegiate Chess League, the leading online chess competition for college students worldwide. This tournament brings the excitement of four vs. four, all-play-all team battles in a fast-paced 5+2 time format. Open to players of all skill levels, participants will compete in divisions based on their ratings, ensuring fair and thrilling matches for everyone.
Are you ready to be part of the fourth season of the India College Chess Championship? Don't wait—sign up today and make history with your college mates!
