Amsterdam Chess Open: The Netherlands' Largest Weekend Chess Tournament

The Amsterdam Chess Open (ACO), taking place from October 24th to 26th at the Corry Tendeloohuis in Amsterdam Zuidoost, has become the largest weekend tournament in the Netherlands. With over 650 entries and a prize pool of over €11,000, the chess tournament is second only to the Tata Steel Chess Tournament. ACO's success is partly due to the enormous popularity of chess among young people.

It's only the third edition, but the Amsterdam Chess Open has already surpassed many established chess tournaments in terms of participant numbers. Two years ago there were 250 participants and last year 460, but this year over 650 players will compete from Friday morning to Sunday evening.

"Chess is alive and well. Its popularity is enormous, especially among young people and children who play a lot of chess online," says chairman Jan Timmerman. "With the Amsterdam Chess Open, we're bringing the online and offline chess communities together in person."

Among the hundreds of participants are four grandmasters and seven international masters, so the tournament is certainly strong. Several streamers will also be participating: chess influencers who will make their moves with a camera pointed at them so fans can follow along.

The tournament will also be very international, with about a third of the participants coming from abroad. Furthermore, the cliché that chess is a sport for old men is now truly outdated, as more than half of the participants are under thirty, and almost a quarter are even minors. The explanation is that many young players discovered chess during the pandemic, for example, through TikTok and YouTube.

"Young people and international players are finding their way to our city and our tournament. Not behind a screen, but at the board, together in one room. This tournament puts Amsterdam back on the international chess map," says Timmerman.

The Amsterdam Chess Open consists of six rounds, with two games each on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The total prize money is €11,355, with the first prize for the winner of Group A being €2,000. The highest-ranking member of the Chess Federation of Greater Amsterdam (SGA) will be declared the 2025 SGA champion. The tournament will be held at the Corry Tendeloohuis, the Business Campus of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences in Zuidoost.