Every World Champion's Greatest Game
There have been seventeen official World Chess Champions. Each left behind a body of work that defined their era. Here is one signature game from each, the game that best captures their style, their genius, and the chess ideas they contributed to the game. Play through these seventeen games and you will have studied a complete education in chess thought.
The Classical Champions (1886–1946)
Wilhelm Steinitz (1st, 1886–1894): Steinitz vs. von Bardeleben, Hastings 1895. A mating combination of extraordinary depth, the opponent walked away from the board. Steinitz invented positional chess; this game shows he could also attack brilliantly.
Emanuel Lasker (2nd, 1894–1921): Lasker vs. Capablanca, St. Petersburg 1914. The game that extended Lasker's reign, a fighting win against the man everyone expected to succeed him. Lasker's psychology and practical strength on full display.
José Raúl Capablanca (3rd, 1921–1927): Capablanca vs. Tartakower, New York 1924. The textbook endgame, effortless technique in a rook ending. Every improving player should study this game.
Alexander Alekhine (4th, 1927–1935, 1937–1946): Réti vs. Alekhine, New York 1924. The king march, Black's king walks from g8 to b5 to escape a check and enable a counterattack. Many consider it the greatest single combination in chess history.
The Soviet Dynasty (1948–1985)
Mikhail Botvinnik (6th, 1948–1963): Botvinnik vs. Capablanca, AVRO 1938. A strategic exchange sacrifice that announced Botvinnik as the future champion. (Full AVRO analysis)
Vasily Smyslov (7th, 1957–1958): Smyslov vs. Ribli, London 1983. A knight endgame of breathtaking precision, Smyslov's endgame mastery distilled into one game.
Mikhail Tal (8th, 1960–1961): Tal vs. Larsen, Candidates 1965. A piece sacrifice that creates chaos only Tal could navigate. The "Magician from Riga" at his peak.
Tigran Petrosian (9th, 1963–1969): Petrosian vs. Spassky, WCC 1966, Game 10. Prophylactic perfection, winning without ever appearing to attack. The definition of prophylaxis.
Boris Spassky (10th, 1969–1972): Spassky vs. Fischer, WCC 1972, Game 5. A brilliant positional squeeze, proof that Spassky was a complete player, not just Fischer's opponent.
The Modern Era (1972–2013)
Bobby Fischer (11th, 1972–1975): Fischer vs. Spassky, WCC 1972, Game 6. The English Opening masterpiece that made the Soviet delegation applaud. (Fischer's dominance)
Anatoly Karpov (12th, 1975–1985): Karpov vs. Kasparov, WCC 1984, Game 27. A positional constriction so perfect that Kasparov had no counter. Karpov's boa-constrictor style at its finest.
Garry Kasparov (13th, 1985–2000): Kasparov vs. Topalov, Wijk aan Zee 1999. The Immortal of the modern era, a rook sacrifice and fifteen-move king hunt. The most analysed game of the 20th century.
Vladimir Kramnik (14th, 2000–2007): Kramnik vs. Kasparov, WCC 2000, Game 2. The Berlin Wall, Kramnik neutralised Kasparov's 1.e4 with a revolutionary endgame approach that changed opening theory forever.
The Current Era (2007–present)
Viswanathan Anand (15th, 2007–2013): Anand vs. Aronian, Wijk aan Zee 2013. A knight sacrifice of breathtaking depth, forced win calculated thirty moves ahead.
Magnus Carlsen (16th, 2013–2023): Carlsen vs. Anand, WCC 2013, Game 5. Grinding a "drawn" rook endgame into a win, Carlsen's signature skill on the world stage.
Ding Liren (17th, 2023–2024): Ding vs. Nepomniachtchi, WCC 2023, Tiebreak Game 4. Under impossible pressure, Ding found the winning combination that crowned him World Champion.
Gukesh Dommaraju (18th, 2024–present): Gukesh vs. Ding Liren, WCC 2024, Game 14. The youngest World Champion in history, a monumental final game.
Study these games
All seventeen champions are represented in our legends archive. Play through each game slowly, understanding the strategic ideas before the tactical sequences. Together, these games form a complete course in chess thinking, from Steinitz's positional revolution to Gukesh's modern precision.