Sindarov Triumphs: 9 Conclusions From The 2025 FIDE World Cup

The 2025 FIDE World Cup is over, with a month of frenetic chess action whittling 206 players down to just one, GM Javokhir Sindarov. The 19-year-old star is both the youngest and lowest-seeded player ever to win the World Cup, earning him a hero's welcome back in Uzbekistan. We take a look at nine conclusions from an event packed with triumphs and heartbreaking losses.

1. Sindarov Scored A Potentially Career-Defining Win
2. Nineteen Is The Age To Be In Modern Chess
3. Wei Yi, Esipenko Complete Surprise Candidates Lineup
4. Goa Was A Graveyard For Top Seeds, And A Tale Of Two Halves
5. Top Stars Struggling In The World Cup Is Nothing New
6. Three Candidates Spots May Be Too Many, But Heartbreak Is Inevitable
7. We Found Some Unexpected Heroes 
8. Goa Was A Success Despite Some Criticism
9. There Was No Home Advantage For The Indian Stars

1. Sindarov Scored A Potentially Career-Defining Win

Javokhir Sindarov is the one player out of the 206 who started the knockout in Goa who can be completely satisfied. He ended not only by qualifying for the Candidates Tournament but by taking home the $120,000 top prize as the one participant not to taste match defeat. He got a hero's welcome back in Uzbekistan, including a $10,000 bonus and a three-room flat. 

Thank you for your congratulations Mr.President @president_uz

I hope I will bring many trophies again🏆

I'm proud to be Uzbek 🇺🇿 pic.twitter.com/zKhSodj4ql

— Javokhir Sindarov (@GMJSindarov) November 28, 2025

Sindarov called winning the World Cup "one of the best days of my life," and it's given the Uzbek star the chance to fulfil some of the immense promise of his early career. When Sindarov became a grandmaster at the age of 12 in 2018 he was the second youngest ever to do so, and he's still fifth on the all-time list. The World Cup was a showcase for his potential, and in 2021 as a 15-year-old 121st seed he knocked out eighth seed GM Alireza Firouzja on the way to the fourth round.

Two years later, then 17 and seeded 55th, he knocked out 10th seed GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave as he again reached round four, only to lose to GM Arjun Erigaisi. This year, as 16th seed, Sindarov was expected to reach round five, and he did, needing a tiebreak only against GM Yu Yangyi.

From there things were expected to get much tougher, but instead earlier upsets paved a dream path to the title.

Sindarov faced not World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju, but his conqueror GM Frederik Svane, not GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov but GM Jose Martinez, not GM Anish Giri but GM Nodirbek Yakubboev and, finally, not Arjun but GM Wei Yi. It was a remarkably smooth run for the Uzbek star, who ended a series of giant-killing runs by his opponents. Only against Martinez did he lose a game, but he hit back to win the second rapid game and go on to clinch the match.

Sindarov becomes the 10th player to win the World Cup in its current format (GM Levon Aronian is the only one to do it twice), and the youngest yet.

Sindarov started 2025 with a star performance in the Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam and is ending as World Cup winner, while 2026 could be huge for him, as he gets to play the Candidates for the first time.  

2. Nineteen Is The Age To Be In Modern Chess

The World Cup is a great stage for youngsters, with GM Magnus Carlsen celebrating his 15th and 17th birthdays while he reached round four in 2005 and then the Semifinals in 2007 (a 1.5-0.5 loss to GM Gata Kamsky). There were a lot of exciting talents in Goa, but for the youngest this wasn't yet to be their year. 

In round two, 11-year-old IM Faustino Oro lost to GM Vidit Gujrathi, 15-year-old GM Andy Woodward lost to GM Kirill Alekseenko, and 16-year-old GMs Ediz Gurel and Abhimanyu Mishra lost to GMs Frederik Svane and Saleh Salem respectively. Round three was the end of the road for 14-year-old GM Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, who fell to GM Richard Rapport, and 15-year-old GM Ivan Zemlyanskii, who was knocked out by GM Matthias Bluebaum.

The youngest stars to reach the latter stages were two 19-year-olds: GM Aleksey Grebnev, who beat GMs David Navara and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave before falling to Esipenko, and of course Sindarov, who went all the way. That meant we have 19-year-old holders of four of the biggest titles in chess.

Many congratulations to Javokhir Sindarov 🇺🇿 🏆👏 Very well deserved victory! The classical world champion (Gukesh), world rapid champion (Murzin), World Cup winner (Sindarov), and Women's World Cup (Divya) winner are all 19 years old. New golden generation!

— David Howell (@DavidHowellGM) November 26, 2025

And remarkably the World Cup winners for 2025 were born only a day apart!

Both FIDE World Cup champions this year are only 19 and have almost the same birthday! 🤯

Divya Deshmukh was born 9 December 2005!
Javokhir Sindarov was born 8 December 2005!

📷: Anna Shtourman; Michal Walusza pic.twitter.com/59oyi3zQGb

— Women's Chess Coverage (@OnTheQueenside) November 26, 2025

3. Wei Yi, Esipenko Complete Surprise Candidates Lineup

Astonishingly, by round five (the last 16) there was only one player remaining who had played the FIDE Candidates Tournament before—GM Levon Aronian. When he lost to Arjun it meant we were guaranteed three first-time candidates, and in the end it was Wei and Esipenko who joined Sindarov in the coveted eight-player event to decide Gukesh's challenger.

Only some remarkable December heroics by the likes of GMs Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Alireza Firouzja could deny GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu the place as FIDE Circuit winner, so that the lineup looks set to be as follows: (GM Hikaru Nakamura's place is only in doubt if Carlsen decides to forsake his young family and play 24 classical games in December to snatch the rating spot!)

2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament

* still to be confirmed

The candidates from the World Cup are not those expected at the start of the event, but are nevertheless very strong. We've already seen Sindarov, who ended at 2726 and world number 22 on the live rating list, while Wei is up to 2755 and world number nine.

In fact 26-year-old Wei's ascent feels like the delayed world championship challenge we expected a decade ago when he crossed 2700 as a 15-year-old playing sparkling attacking chess. University studies and the tough reality of elite-level chess intervened, but now we'll get a chance to see if he can make the next step. After losing only one of 28 games in Goa—the last—he's unlikely to be a pushover.

The same goes for Esipenko, with the 23-year-old currently rated 2681 (soon to be 2696 in December), but having been rated 2723 three years ago. Since then he's got married and also had to adapt to a lack of international invitations for a Russian chess player after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. His qualification means we've dodged what was looking likely—the first Candidates ever without a Russian/Soviet player.

4. Goa Was A Graveyard For Top Seeds, And A Tale Of Two Halves

If one thing defined the World Cup, however, it was the brutal fate suffered by so many of the top names. All but one must lose in a big knockout event, but in most cases we didn't expect it to be so soon. Here, for instance, is the table of the expected path of the top-10 seeds to the title that we included in our preview article. We've crossed out the rounds that they didn't get to play.

Potential Path To 2025 World Cup Victory For Top-10 Seeds

Already in round two, the first to be played by the top-50 seeds, GMs Wesley So and Hans Niemann lost, to GMs Titas Stremavicius and Lorenzo Lodici respectively. In So's case it was particularly painful, since the position where he resigned was one in which it was still possible to make a study-like draw.

😱 Wesley So resigns in a drawn position and is eliminated from the #2025FIDEWorldCup in his first match!https://t.co/iH25b9jDgH pic.twitter.com/HpuphK7z7C

— chess24 (@chess24com) November 5, 2025

A round later it was the end of the road for the World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju as well as GMs Anish Giri, Abdusattorov, and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, then GMs Praggnanandhaa and Vincent Keymer fell in round four. The two remaining top-10 seeds, Wei and Arjun, met in the Quarterfinals, and after that it was only Wei who continued to the final.

If one video summed up the drama of the World Cup it's this one of GM Peter Leko congratulating his student Keymer as both reached round four, while Gukesh was rushed out of the venue by security after his loss.

Heroes and Heartbreaks!#FIDEWorldCup pic.twitter.com/KxJYaRAuoI

— Rakesh Kulkarni (@itherocky) November 8, 2025

Of course more top players fell outside of the top-10, and the event was remarkably lopsided when it came to the bracket.

Top 16 seeds in top half of the draw:

Gukesh - eliminated
Anish - eliminated
Wesley - eliminated
Abdu - eliminated
Shakh - eliminated
Nepo - eliminated
Le Liem - Alive
Sindarov - Alive

Top 16 seeds in bottom half of the draw:

Arjun - Alive
Pragg - Alive
Vincent - Alive
Wei Yi…

— Chess Numbers India (@chess_insights) November 8, 2025

This was only at round three, and meant the path to victory and the Candidates was far easier for the remaining players in the top half of the bracket. Wei battled through from the bottom half, while Sindarov took full advantage after GM Liem Le was knocked out by GM Alexander Donchenko in round five.  

5. Top Stars Struggling In The World Cup Is Nothing New

To some extent, Goa was an outlier, but the simple logic of two-game knockout matches is that you have to expect upsets. Even if a significantly higher rating makes a player a 70 percent favorite to win a match, winning two such matches in a row becomes a coin flip, and to win the world cup you need to win seven.

We also saw many upsets in 2023, with only half of the top-20 seeds making it to round four in both 2023 and 2025.

Top 20 Seeds Reaching Round 4 In 2025

Top 20 Seeds Reaching Round 4 In 2023

Or we can look, for instance, at the number of players seeded to reach the Quarterfinals (seeds 1-8) and Semifinals (1-4) who actually made it in previous World Cups.

Success Of Top Seeds In Reaching Latter Stages Of World Cup

As you can see, two of the top-eight seeds reaching the Quarterfinals in 2025 is lower than average, but not by much, as less than three players have made it historically. Just once did only a single top-eight player reach the Quarterfinals—Carlsen in 2021. 

None of the top-four seeds making the Semifinals is again rare—it only happened once before in 2007—but only slightly more than one player is expected to reach that stage. When it comes to the winners, meanwhile, Sindarov is the lowest-seeded player ever to take the title, with 12th-seed GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda in 2021 second, but only twice has the top seed won the event. That was GM Boris Gelfand in 2009, and Carlsen in 2023.   

6. Three Candidates Spots May Be Too Many, But Heartbreak Is Inevitable 

Of course there would be absolutely no fun in a knockout tournament where the favorites always won, and in that case we could skip the event and use the rating list, but questions have been asked about giving as many as three Candidates spots to the World Cup. GM David Howell, for instance, had doubts.

Howell on Candidates qualification: "I like the fact that it's a meritocracy. They're trying to say you have to win your spot there through a knockout like the World Cup, or through a Grand Swiss. I think 3 in the World Cup is a lot! I'm not sure I would have done that..." pic.twitter.com/jxgtcD5Wy2

— chess24 (@chess24com) November 24, 2025

The numbers provide some back-up, since if only one of the top-four seeds is expected to reach the last four, it looks generous to give three of the final four players a Candidates spot.

The World Cup was almost certainly the end of the line for the 2026 Candidates hopes of many players after Praggnanandhaa's early exit made him a huge favorite to take the FIDE Circuit spot. It was particularly tough on the top-10 stars Keymer, Arjun, and So.

In the case of Keymer and Arjun it would be impossible to say they'd had bad events. Neither lost a classical game and they'll climb five-six rating points on the next rating list, but their hopes of becoming world champion look to be over for another two years, just when both were riding high. 

Keymer is at an all-time peak rating and world number-four, but missed out after losing to Esipenko in rapid tiebreaks. He also came incredibly close at the FIDE Grand Swiss, missing out on the Candidates on tiebreaks after failing to win a completely won position against Bluebaum in the penultimate round.

Arjun, meanwhile, is the only player to have been rated above 2800 never to have qualified for the Candidates. For a second World Cup in a row he lost a quarterfinal match in tiebreaks, in 2023 to Praggnanandhaa and now to Wei.

He finished half a point off the pace in the Grand Swiss, and was also unlucky not to get a spot based on finishing runner-up to GM Fabiano Caruana in the 2024 FIDE Circuit. It's a little known fact that if two spots at the top in the Grand Swiss or World Cup were taken by players already qualified—such as Gukesh and Giri in the World Cup—then the spot would go to Arjun as 2024 Circuit runner-up and not to another player in those events.

Path for @anishgiri opening up really nicely. Same for Gukesh if Nodirbek goes out tomorrow.

If both get to semis, Arjun qualifies for candidates directly.

— Chess Numbers India (@chess_insights) November 7, 2025

Of course Gukesh and Giri swiftly went on to lose. In general, the World Cup is an incredibly tough event to predict—it's much easier to jinx players! 

Shankland beats Martinez in the final. Third for Erigaisi. https://t.co/LCz7vOOr0A

— GM Jacob Aagaard (@GMJacobAagaard) November 18, 2025

The one player who came closest to Candidates qualification but missed out was 28th seed GM Nodirbek Yakubboev, who played a great event but was the only Semifinalist not to make the cut after losing to both Sindarov and Esipenko.

7. We Found Some Unexpected Heroes 

Whatever its value as a way to choose candidates, the World Cup is a huge amount of fun, and we got countless stories of giant-killing that put the spotlight on lesser-known chess players. 

Frederik Svane beating the World Champion already made it a memorable event for German chess fans, but Donchenko went on a deep run. He beat GM David Anton, then knocked out both Grand Swiss Candidates qualifiers Giri and Bluebaum in consecutive rounds. A heroic tiebreak victory over 13th seed Le put the 27-year-old on the brink of the Semifinals and the Candidates, but he fell to Yakubboev at that stage.

2572-rated 25-year-old Italian GM Lodici began as the 119th seed and would be the last <2600 player to depart the event. He knocked out Niemann, then GM Michael Adams without losing a game, but ultimately was stopped by GM Sam Sevian in the armageddon finale of a tiebreak where the last seven games were all decisive.

If there was one player who enhanced his reputation still further in the World Cup it was perhaps 26-year-old GM Jose Martinez, the Peru-born Mexican number-one. Martinez has mainly been known as an online legend under the username Jospem, but he gained 23 ratings points in Goa as he overcame GMs Abdusattorov (2-0!), Alexey Sarana, and Pentala Harikrishna. As we've seen, he was the one player to take the lead against Sindarov, but ultimately the Uzbek star hit back and went on to win their quarterfinal and not only qualify for the Candidates but win the title.

All but one glorious run was doomed to come to an end, however, with 34-year-old GM Sam Shankland most visibly expressing the pain of falling short. When the U.S. star beat GMs Vasyl Ivanchuk, Vidit, Rapport, and GM Daniil Dubov to reach the Quarterfinals he saw it as a chance to reach the Candidates after just missing out against GM Sergey Karjakin in the 2021 World Cup Quarterfinals:     

I’ve lost so many games in my life—that’s part of being a top athlete. I will forget every single one except for the 2021 Quarterfinals. I will take that match to my grave, and this is my chance to exorcize some demons!

Alas, he would fall just short again, with Esipenko winning in tiebreaks.

8. Goa Was A Success Despite Some Complaints

When two-time world championship challenger GM Ian Nepomniachtchi crashed out in his first match, against GM Diptayan Ghosh, he called the venue "one of those places that you won't be sad to leave."

Ian Nepomniachtch first comment after the he lost Round 2 of the FIDE World Cup 2025, Goa 🤷

"One of those places that you won't be sad to leave" https://t.co/J6BBdb4Hj2 pic.twitter.com/9z3PnvHwA4

— The Khel India (@TheKhelIndia) November 5, 2025

He had criticisms of the hotel, food, and heat, while the topic of the existence (or not) of bed bugs in the hotel became an online controversy. 

Overall, however, despite the difficulties of running such a big event, things seem to have gone smoothly. Giri was one of those to hit back at criticism.

Are the rumours about the conditions in Goa for the @FIDE_chess World Cup true?@anishgiri answers. pic.twitter.com/PtBu7mrGgy

— ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) November 11, 2025

Indian coach and GM Srinath Narayanan also pointed out that the issues with heat and food that some foreign players faced were similar to those Indian players face when travelling to Europe.

Regarding Nepo’s comments on the World Cup: Indian players routinely adapt to similar challenges in events from Khanty Mansiysk to Wijk aan Zee. There have been instances where certain players have no other edible option but bread and cheese.

As for the hotel: it’s no Marriott,…

— Srinath Narayanan (@srinathchess) November 13, 2025

There were many positive reports from Goa, though the majority of players only got to stay for a short time.

Had an incredible time working in Goa🇮🇳🙏🏼
Amazing hospitality, flawless organization, passionate chess fans, and delicious food.
The perfect place for a World Cup. Thank you, India - see you soon! #chess #india #goa #worldcup pic.twitter.com/Qdq89VaZhP

— Keti Tsatsalashvili (@keti_chess) November 28, 2025

9. There Was No Home Advantage For The Indian Stars

"Home advantage" is a concept in sport, but once again we got evidence that it may not work in chess when there are no cheering crowds in the playing hall and the extra attention off the board only adds to the pressure. 24 Indian players began the event—double the number from the next most represented country, the USA—but only one, Arjun, made it as far as the Quarterfinals. When he was knocked out it meant the chance to celebrate a local hero had gone.

Meanwhile for Uzbekistan, India continues to be a happy hunting ground. Sindarov was on the team that won the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Chennai, and now he's followed up with World Cup success. Yakubboev almost clinched a Candidates spot—Sindarov was apologetic after his victory in their head-to-head match—and even the Uzbek number-one Abdusattorov, who had an event to forget, shared in the satisfaction of victory. Speaking during the London Chess Classic yesterday he commented, "I’m very happy for my friend Javokhir. He did a historic job for Uzbek chess and showed true Uzbek spirit!"

The Indian stars will be back, however, and despite the disappointment for Arjun we could still get an all-Indian world championship match in 2026! 

The 2025 FIDE World Cup, which took place from November 1 to 26 in Goa, India, determined three spots in the 2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament. It was a 206-player single-elimination knockout tournament with eight rounds. Each match consisted of two classical games followed by rapid and blitz tiebreaks if needed. The prize fund was $2 million.

Previous coverage:

• Finals Tiebreaks: Javokhir Sindarov Becomes Youngest Ever World Cup Winner
• Finals Game 2: Esipenko Grabs Last Candidates Spot, Final Goes To Tiebreaks
• Finals Game 1: Esipenko Hits Back To Lead Candidates Battle
• Semifinals Tiebreaks: Wei Yi Joins Sindarov In World Cup Final After Esipenko Blunders Rook
• Semifinals Game 2: Two Candidates Spots To Be Decided In World Cup Tiebreaks
• Semifinals Game 1: Wei Yi Escapes In Style Vs. Esipenko As World Cup Semifinals Begin
• Quarterfinals Tiebreaks: Wei Yi Knocks Out Arjun, Advances With Sindarov, Esipenko
• Quarterfinals Game 2: Yakubboev Advances, Wei Yi Survives Vs. Arjun
• Quarterfinals Game 1: Yakubboev Draws 1st Blood, Crosses 2700 Live Rating
• Round 5 Tiebreaks: Shankland, Esipenko, Martinez, Donchenko Reach World Cup Quarterfinals
• Round 5 Game 2: Arjun Beats Aronian To Reach World Cup Quarterfinals
• Round 5 Game 1: 19-Year-Old Sindarov Grabs Only Win
• Round 4 Tiebreaks: Arjun Strides On As Pragg, Keymer, MVL, Rapport Lead World Cup Exodus
• Round 4 Game 2: Donchenko, Martinez Continue Giant-Killing As 11 Matches Go To Tiebreaks 
• Round 4 Game 1: Aronian, Martinez Strike As Praggnanandhaa Escapes Vs. Dubov
• Round 3 Tiebreaks: Vachier-Lagrave Wins Marathon Match In Armageddon
• Round 3 Game 2: World Champion Gukesh Eliminated By Frederik Svane; Giri, Abdusattorov Also Out
• Round 3 Game 1: Martinez Upsets Abdusattorov With Black Pieces
• Round 2 Tiebreaks: Lodici Knocks Out Niemann, Rasmus Svane Wins In Armageddon
• Round 2 Game 2: Harikrishna Sacs Queen; Nepomniachtchi, Wesley So, Aravindh Eliminated
• Round 2 Game 1: Arjun, Keymer, Wei, Mamedyarov, Vachier-Lagrave Among Early Leaders
• Round 1 Tiebreaks: 12-Year-Old Oro Among 20 Winners In Tiebreaks
• Round 1 Game 2: IM Shixu Wang Pulls Upset, 20 Matches Go To Tiebreaks
• Round 1 Game 1: Saleh Plays Attack Of The Day, Favorites Prevail In Game 1
• 2025 FIDE World Cup Pairings, Venue Revealed
• Divya Among 6 Players Awarded World Cup Wildcard Spots; Firouzja Not In