Hall of Fame – the 50 greatest chess players of all time

The reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen has been ranked only second behind Garry Kasparov, while Bobby Fischer is third in the full Hall of Fame that is revealed on chess24 today. The complete list of the 50 greatest players of all times comes as the Norwegian World Champion prepares to play in the Skilling Open, the first event on the $1.5 million Champions Chess Tour. That action kicks off next Sunday, November 22nd.

Today chess24 can reveal the players who topped the list of the 50 Greatest Players of All Time, according to our expert panel, grandmasters Jan Gustafsson and Peter Heine Nielsen. The duo ranked the best players in the world in a popular video series where the names were gradually revealed over the course of two months.

The video series, where each and every player on the list is discussed with a sample game, is available for free for Premium members.

Using chess statistician Jeff Sonas’ Chessmetrics calculations as the basis for the list, the rankings have caused a huge debate among chess fans around the world, with the authors receiving both praise and criticism. It’s unlikely to end with this.

The duo concluded that 13th World Champion Garry Kasparov is the #1 Greatest Player of All Time. Magnus Carlsen, who snatched the World Championship title from Viswanathan Anand in 2013 and defended it in 2014, 2016 and 2018, is #2.

See also:

• Video series by Jan & Peter: 50 Greatest Player of All Time
• Countdown to the greatest players of all time
• Who are the 50 greatest players of all time?
• Magnus Carlsen’s chess24 profile
• Garry Kasparov’s chess24 profile