A parallel competition to the Open, more players, same spirit

Team England floated a great idea: a rating-limited competition, like the U21 tournament in football, so that more members get a chance to play. We've taken that idea and built it out into a concrete proposal below.

What is it?

A Sub 1500 Division running alongside the Open: same match days, same team representatives, same general rulebook. The goal is to give lower-rated players their own competitive stage without adding administrative burden.

Rating limit

< 1500

at lineup confirmation

Minimum per match

10

players per team

Time control

3 days

per game, same as Open

Match frequency

15 days

between each match

Format

Round robin — every team plays every other team once. The number of rounds depends on how many teams enter (6 teams = 5 rounds, 4 teams = 3 rounds, etc.). The fixture will be confirmed once we know who's in.

Tiebreaks

Final standings use Sonneborn–Berger (SB) as the primary tiebreak. Interim standings (during the season) are ordered by:

Board point difference (won minus lost)
Total board points won
Head-to-head result

Rating eligibility

Eligibility is checked at the moment the lineup is confirmed for each match. This means:

A player who crosses 1500 before lineup confirmation is ineligible for that match and all subsequent ones.
Games already registered before the rating crossed 1500 remain valid and count normally.

Can a player compete in both divisions?

Yes — provided they meet the rating requirement at each lineup confirmation. The one binding rule:

A player must represent the same country in both divisions throughout the entire season. Playing for a different country results in immediate disqualification, and the team forfeits the match points in which that player participated.

What if a team can't field the minimum?

A team that cannot field 10 eligible players forfeits the match. The only exception is if the opposing team agrees to wait and both captains arrange a reschedule — this must be mutually agreed upon and communicated to the organizers in advance.

Reschedule deadline: a postponed match must begin before the following round's match starts.

Administration

Each team keeps its existing Open representatives — no new appointments needed. All general league rules apply equally in both divisions.

Participation is optional

We understand not every team will have enough Sub 1500 players or the capacity to run both divisions at once — that's completely fine. We just need to know who's in so we can build the fixture.

Please reply in this thread

Let us know whether your team will or will not be entering the Sub 1500 Division.

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