Niemann Secures Funds for $1 Million Buy-In Tournament

Organizer Wadim Rosenstein confirmed to Chess.com that the funds for all four players have been secured and that he has received Niemann's signed contract, making the $4 million tournament more likely to take place.

Together with the launch of his personal website, Niemann's tweet provided an update on the $1 million buy-in tournament that was announced almost a month ago. Due to its unusual format, which involves rather high stakes, the likelihood of the tournament actually taking place in November seemed uncertain, but it's now become just a bit more likely.

"Contracts have been signed, I’ll be playing in the 1m Buyin High Roller tournaments, all funds have been secured," Niemann wrote on X.

Chess.com reached out to event organizer Rosenstein, who confirmed that funds are secured for all four players. We received confirmations from Abdusattorov and Caruana and asked Nepomniachtchi for comment.

The buy-in tournament is scheduled for November 21, 2024, in Düsseldorf, Germany. The format is a double round-robin among four players with six rounds of rapid (15+0) games. All four players are required to bring $1 million to the table; the winner will walk away with $2 million. The second-placed player gets $1.5 million, third gets $0.4 million (losing $0.6 million on the deal) and the fourth player gets $0, losing a full million. $100,000 will go to the organizer.

This remarkable event sprung out of a conversation last month on social media platform X between Niemann and Rosenstein, a businessman and owner of a conglomerate of companies called WR Group. Rosenstein also organized last year's WR Masters in Düsseldorf (February 2023) and the World Rapid Team Championship (August 2023). He will host a second edition of the latter event August 1-6 in Astana, Kazakhstan, and also two brand new tournaments October 31-November 3 in Dubai and October 14-18 in London.

When Niemann inquired about the London event, Rosenstein came up with the buy-in format and invited the American GM to it, also on X. A week later, he confirmed the event and the players to Chess.com. As it stands now, the tournament seems on, coinciding with the world championship match between GMs Ding Liren and Gukesh Dommaraju that is provisionally scheduled between November 20 and December 15, 2024.

This $1 million buy-in tournament represents a bold and exciting development in the chess world. It combines high stakes, innovative formats, and prestigious participants, promising to attract the attention of not only chess enthusiasts but also the wider public. If the tournament proves successful, it could pave the way for more daring and original initiatives, propelling chess to new heights. In any case, we are in for a fascinating spectacle that is sure to leave its mark on the history of this royal game.