In a plot twist no one expected but everyone quietly prayed for, FIDE has officially legalized jeans at the 2025 World Rapid & Blitz Championship in Doha. Yes—those jeans. The exact item of clothing that sparked last year’s most dramatic non-checkmate moment, when Magnus Carlsen got fined, warned, unpaired, unplugged, and very nearly unhinged after refusing to change out of his denim uniform.
Twelve months later, the world’s most powerful chess organization has decided that maybe, just maybe, denim isn’t a threat to the integrity of the sport.
And honestly? It’s about time.
After all, if jeans can survive cowboys, construction sites, and college dorm laundry disasters, surely they can handle a couple thousand blitz moves per hour.
A Quick Flashback: The Jeans That Broke the Internet
In case anyone has repressed the memory, the 2024 incident went down like this:
Magnus wore jeans.
FIDE said “please don’t.”
Magnus said “no.”
FIDE said “okay then you’re not paired.”
Magnus said “fine—fuck you,” withdrew, went home, probably still wearing the jeans.
Internet: explodes.
It became the biggest dress-code meltdown in chess since… actually ever. And while the live audience applauded Magnus’ decision, many pros shook their heads. Hans Niemann even declared the chess world “a joke” and accused the sport of being controlled by a single player for the second time that week.
Some people use rooks to create chaos. Others use Levi’s.
FIDE’s 2025 Patch Notes: Denim Added, Shorts Still Banned
Fast forward to 2025, and FIDE is now basically saying:
“Okay okay, fine. Jeans are allowed… provided they don’t look like you lost a fight with a washing machine.”
The new rules officially permit classic, non-distressed, dark business-casual jeans in blue, black, or gray. In other words: no holes, no rips, no graffiti, and definitely no “I bought this on sale because it was already damaged.”
It’s progress. Baby steps.
But before anyone gets too excited—shorts remain illegal. Sleeveless shirts are illegal. Beachwear is illegal, because unfortunately the Rapid & Blitz is not being held on an actual beach, despite Doha’s excellent weather.
Minor dress-code violations now cost a minimum of €300. Major violations cost at least €1,000 and automatic exclusion from the next round. Which means, in theory, that if someone shows up wearing flip-flops, they’ll pay the price first in cash and then again in rating points.
Why Now?
FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich said last year that the Carlsen-jeans blowup highlighted the need to “adapt to the evolving nature of chess as a global and accessible sport.”
Translation:
Chess needs to look modern, feel modern, and maybe stop chasing away its biggest star because he prefers a comfortable Scandinavian outfit.
So this year, jeans are welcome. Sneakers too—so long as they’re “unicolored.” Soles can be funky, which is generous. If someone wants to wear shoes that scream “midlife crisis,” that’s now allowed.
The Lineup: Jeans or No Jeans, the Field Is Ridiculous
Fashion jokes aside, Doha is hosting arguably the strongest Rapid & Blitz lineup ever assembled.
More than 360 players have confirmed participation, including:
- World Champion Gukesh D, fresh off a monster year
- Magnus Carlsen, new father, former jeans outlaw, constant chaos generator
- Ian Nepomniachtchi, co-champion of last year’s Blitz
- Fabiano Caruana
- Anish Giri
- Wesley So
- Levon Aronian
- Rising lions like Keymer, Praggnanandhaa, Erigaisi, Abdusattorov, Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, and Ediz Gürel
Plus legends like Grischuk and Ivanchuk, the latter returning to the city where he famously won Rapid gold in 2016.
The women’s field is just as stacked:
Ju Wenjun, Zhu Jiner, Lei Tingjie, Goryachkina, Humpy Koneru, and the Muzychuk sisters—Anna and Mariya—are all locked in.
With over €1,000,000 in prize money, a premium venue at Qatar University, and one of the most diverse lineups in chess history, the tournament promises drama, brilliance, time scrambles, and probably at least one player getting fined for wearing a shirt that is “too wrinkled.”
The Big Question
Will jeans bring Magnus luck?
Will Gukesh confirm his dominance?
Will someone try to sneak in distressed denim and get caught by a vigilant arbiter with a magnifying glass?
We’ll find out in Doha.
Until then, the big takeaway is simple:
FIDE has finally accepted that grandmasters are humans, humans wear jeans, and sometimes the jeans win.
I’m a passionate board game enthusiast and a skilled player in chess, xiangqi and Go. Words for Attacking Chess since 2023. Ping me at Lichess for a game or chat.
