What is the story about?
Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura aren't part of the action at Tata Steel Chess in Netherlands' Wijk aan Zee. World No 1 Carlsen hardly takes part in Classical events beyond Norway Chess, his home event, while Nakamura – ranked just one spot below him on the FIDE ratings –
is setting his sights on the Candidates in March.
The two icons of chess, instead, were in action in a unique game on Tuesday. Carlsen and Nakamura made a special appearance at ICE Barcelona 2026, one of the world's largest iGaming and gaming-tech trade shows.
And one of the highlights of the event was an exhibition game between the two leading Grandmasters hosted by BETBY. This, however, wasn't just any game of chess, but one that required both players to wear a blindfold and rely purely on memory for their moves.
According to FIDE, this was the first instance of a blindfold match between the top-two players in the world. Carlsen was expected to begin with a Catalan Opening but ended up playing the Reti Opening. Nakamura replied with an Agincourt Defense for the 15-minute game that ended in a 37-move draw via repetition.
International Master Levy Rozman, a popular chess streamer known more popularly as GothamChess, provided play-by-play commentary for the unique showdown between Carlsen and Nakamura, helping those in attendance understand the moves and strategies better.
Besides the blindfold game, Carlsen, Nakamura and Rozman also participated in a series of exhibition blitz matches against spectators in attendance at the event.
The two icons of chess, instead, were in action in a unique game on Tuesday. Carlsen and Nakamura made a special appearance at ICE Barcelona 2026, one of the world's largest iGaming and gaming-tech trade shows.
Carlsen vs Nakamura blindfold showdown ends in 37-move draw
And one of the highlights of the event was an exhibition game between the two leading Grandmasters hosted by BETBY. This, however, wasn't just any game of chess, but one that required both players to wear a blindfold and rely purely on memory for their moves.
According to FIDE, this was the first instance of a blindfold match between the top-two players in the world. Carlsen was expected to begin with a Catalan Opening but ended up playing the Reti Opening. Nakamura replied with an Agincourt Defense for the 15-minute game that ended in a 37-move draw via repetition.
Carlsen and Nakamura dazzle Barcelona with blindfold chess show at ICE 2026 🔥
The world’s No.1 and No.2 chess players headlined ICE Barcelona with a rare exhibition match played entirely from memory, joined by GothamChess for commentary, insight, and fan interaction.
🇳🇴 Magnus… pic.twitter.com/FAWQ2rfK3h
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) January 21, 2026
International Master Levy Rozman, a popular chess streamer known more popularly as GothamChess, provided play-by-play commentary for the unique showdown between Carlsen and Nakamura, helping those in attendance understand the moves and strategies better.
Besides the blindfold game, Carlsen, Nakamura and Rozman also participated in a series of exhibition blitz matches against spectators in attendance at the event.
