Erling Haaland has launched a major investment in a new format for the World Che

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Manchester City star striker Erling Haaland has announced his investment in chess. Haaland will contribute to Norway Chess (an annual international chess tournament held in Stavanger since 2013) and the new Total World Chess Championship.

Together with Norwegian businessman Marten Borge, the footballer founded the company Chess Mates, which will become a major shareholder in the Norwegian Chess Association.

"Chess is an incredible game. It sharpens your mind, and there are clear similarities to football. You need to think quickly, trust your intuition, and think several moves ahead."

"I'm investing in Norway Chess because I believe the new Total Chess World Championship Tour can make chess an even more popular sport for spectators around the world. The Norway Chess team has already done an impressive job developing the event, and joining the project was too tempting an opportunity to pass up," FIDE quotes Haaland as saying .

The Total Chess World Championship Tour will consist of four tournaments held throughout the year in four different cities. The tournament will crown a unified world champion in three disciplines—classical chess, rapid chess, and blitz chess. These competitions are sanctioned by FIDE for at least 16 years.

The prize fund for the competition is reported to be at least $2.7 million. The pilot version of the tournament will take place in the fall of 2026, and the full season will begin in 2027.