Explained: Vishy Anand to face Magnus Carlsen twice this week in a new form of chess called Casablanca chess variant

Viswanathan Anand will face off against Carlsen, Nakamura and Bassem two times each this month in unique format called Casablanca Chess Variant. We reveal how the new variant came about (with a little help from Kasparov, The Queen's Gambit and a popular YouTuber)

Viswanathan Anand (centre) will face Hikaru Nakamura (left) and Magnus Carlsen in a tournament in Morocco which will be played in the unique Casablanca Chess Variant format. (PHOTOS: FIDE via Lennart Ootes, Stev Bonhage)

Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand will face off against Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura and Amin Bassem, Africa’s strongest Grandmaster, at a chess event in Morocco’s Casablanca later this week where a very unique format — called the Casablanca Chess Variant — will be showcased.

The four players have been chosen to represent their continents in the event which will take place on May 18th and 19th. The Casablanca Chess Variant format has been conceptualised by the organisers of the event Casablanca Stock Exchange, Casa Events and Animation, and the Royal Moroccan Chess Federation and it will have players having a completely new kind of starting position.

In this explainer, we break down what the Casablanca Variant is and how the event will work.

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How does the Casablanca Chess Variant work?

Explaining the unique format of the variant, the organisers said, “Each game at the Casablanca Chess will commence from equal positions inspired by historical gems — some renowned, others less so. (The question is) Will today’s masters follow the well-trodden paths of their predecessors, or will they choose a new direction?”

While on commentary duty for the FIDE Candidates tournament, five-time world champion Anand had explained how this event will play out.

“We’ll have selected positions that we’ll need to play out. The positions will be interesting and equal,” he said before announcing that he will also be in action at an event in Lyon in June (a rapid tournament) and then another tournament in Corsica (blitz open tournament).

What this means is that organisers will pick a mid-way point from a historical game, for example, a game from the 1995 World Championship match between Garry Kasparov and Anand. And then the two players on the board have to try and beat their opponent from that point on.

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So, how will these selected positions on the board be picked at the Casablanca event?

Grandmasters Laurent Fressinet and Hicham Hamdouchi will choose and unveil surprise starting positions before each game.

How many games will Anand play?

All the four players will play a double round robin event, meaning that each player will meet the other three players twice, so each player will play six games. They will play three games on May 18 and three games on May 19, organisers told The Indian Express.

So Anand will play a game against Carlsen and Nakamura on May 18 and then again on May 19.

How is Casablanca Chess Variant different from the Freestyle G.O.A.T. event?

The basic idea behind both Casablanca Chess Variant and the Freestyle G.O.A.T. event is the same: since opening prep has made games predictable and an exercise in memorising moves and lines, have a starting position on the board that the players don’t know beforehand, so cannot prepare move order in advance and have to improvise while on the board.

“In this digital age, some games unfold seamlessly, their moves orchestrated in advance, leaving little room for creativity at the board. To inspire the spirit of independent thought and strategic creativity, the Casablanca Stock Exchange introduces the groundbreaking Casablanca Chess Variant,” the Casablanca Chess organisers announced.

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While the Freestyle G.O.A.T Chess Event that Carlsen promoted had pieces on the back ranks of both players organised in a randomised order, the Casablanca Chess Variant will use historical games as an inspiration to present players with a position.

How did the idea of the Casablanca Chess Variant come about?

Woman Grandmaster Anna Burtasova, who is a press officer for the event, informed The Indian Express: “The idea belongs to Tarik Senhaji, Chief Executive Officer of the Casablanca Stock Exchange, and Grandmaster Hicham Hamdouchi. This is the story Tarik told me: ‘I was watching the Queen’s Gambit and the analysis of the games from this series by famous YouTuber Agadmator. After seeing the analysis, I thought that the starting positions were so wonderful, equal but on a knife’s edge, with many variations leading to complications and great attacking play. The variation on the Ivanchuk game in particular made an impression on me. I called Hicham and he told me that it was Garry Kasparov who picked them for the series. I then told him we have to make it into a real competition! And this is how the idea of the Casablanca Chess Variant was born.”