Bronze for the women at the European Championships, Matthias Blübaum in the Candidates Tournament and Vincent Keymer could also make it. Things are going well in German chess – if it weren’t for the continued desolate behavior in the chess association.
Hardly anyone had her on their list before the tournament – and yet the German women made history at the European Chess Championship. For the first time in 47 years they won bronze in an international team competition.
“A great success, 47 years after Buenos Aires!“, praised Grandmaster Barbara Hund, who was there when she last won a medal in 1978. The new women’s national coach Zahar Efimenko was also happy about “a great level, great quality and stability“Hanna Marie Klek in particular stood out and secured the great success – in which the supposedly strongest German woman, the pregnant Elisabeth Paetz, did not even play.
The feeling was different for the German men: They started the tournament in first place, but ultimately only came fourth. An early defeat against Denmark quickly ended their gold hopes, and ultimately even a strong final spurt wasn’t enough for the podium. A “a conciliatory conclusion, but nothing more“, said national coach Jan Gustafsson of the final win against the Netherlands.
First German since 1991 Candidates Tournament
Nevertheless: Things are going well in German chess. A few weeks ago, Matthias Blübaum from Lemgo sensationally qualified for the chess candidates tournament in spring 2026. For him it is then a matter of determining against seven other players who can challenge the Indian Gukesh at the world championship.
Blübaum has already been European champion twice, but his second place at the Grand Swiss and the associated candidate tournament place came as a surprise – even for himself. “A huge surprise, I didn’t expect it“, he told Welt am Sonntag. Blübaum is only the third German to qualify for the Candidates Tournament; Robert Hübner ultimately succeeded in 1991. The German Chess Federation called his achievement “historic.”
Blübaum comes from a chess family, but preferred to finish his mathematics studies in Bielefeld in 2022 in order to secure himself. He is now concentrating on his chess career and will also have to look for a coach and a professional environment for the Candidates Tournament.
With the success, Blübaum moved into the top 50 in the world – many had favored the higher-ranking Indians for a place in the candidates’ tournament. Or Vincent Keymer, the top German talent who has made a remarkable development this year into a definitive world-class player.
Keymer in sixth place Live world rankings
At the Grand Swiss, Blübaum was on the verge of defeat against Keymer, which would probably have resulted in Keymer and not him qualifying for the Candidates Tournament. But: Keymer made a mistake in a position that is actually easy for a world-class man like him to understand and fell for one of Blübaum’s tricks. “Then I rose from the dead“said Blübaum afterwards in his usual critical and self-ironic manner.
Keymer could have been annoyed for weeks about what might have been a unique, missed opportunity. But he seems to have quickly digested the frustration. At the European Team Championships he was by far the strongest German and is now in sixth place in the live world rankings (and, by the way, well ahead of the current world champion Gukesh, who has slipped out of the top 10 since his World Cup victory).
Keymer moved to Vienna some time ago. He increasingly sits at the board in a stylish vest and sometimes wears an unusual ring on his finger. In interviews he is more open than before; the still only 20-year-old from Rhineland-Palatinate has always been eloquent and self-confident.
Vincent Keymer at a chess tournament in Las Vegas
FIDE World Cup in Goa opens up new opportunities for Keymer
Keymer is now incredibly strong, especially in the final, and often gets a decisive advantage from seemingly even positions. Early on he was compared to Magnus Carlsen, but now the comparisons seem appropriate. The FIDE World Cup starts in just under two weeks in Goa, India, on the west coast. A knockout tournament in which the top three places also qualify for the Candidates Tournament. Keymer, who has already won a tournament in India this year, has a legitimate chance of qualifying there.
And then there is also good news at the association level in German chess. After a serious financial crisis, the association generated a surplus of 300,000 euros in the first half of 2025. The number of members is increasing and is now just under the sound barrier of 100,000.
Managing Director defends himself against termination
Nevertheless, the chess association manages to break through this wave of success with bad news. The association’s press officer left the European Team Championships upset because he allegedly fell out with men’s national coach Gustafsson. And: Managing director Anja Gering was recently released after 19 years with the association and is now legally defending herself against the dismissal. Some accuse the association and President Ingrid Lauterbach of having prepared the separation well in advance.
The mood in the Chess Federation’s office has been frosty for some time. Lauterbach, who can also claim that the financial crisis has been averted, will now have to stand for new elections in a few months to a special main committee, which several regional associations had called up. Despite all the positive sporting headlines in German chess, interpersonal interaction apparently still has room for improvement.