The Kremlin on the Chessboard: Russia’s Soft Power Through Chess
- Giorgi Vachandze
- Mar 18
- 8 min read
Chess is one of the oldest and most beloved games in the world. It is an exciting and engaging game of strategy, mental prowess, and efficient planning, which is why, for centuries, it has been considered a pinnacle of intelligence and genius. Since the beginning of the 20th century, competitive matters of chess have been institutionalized and formalized by the World Chess Federation (FIDE). Established in 1924, FIDE has governed all the official aspects of the game since its founding in Paris.
Apart from the final codification of chess rules and regulations under the International Chess Federation, the beginning of the 20th century saw the rise of a state that would dominate the world of International Politics for decades to come. That state was the Soviet Union. Vladimir Lenin, one of the architects of the October Revolution in 1917 and the leader of the Communist Party of Russia, was an ardent admirer of chess. Which is why, after the Bolshevik Revolution, the Soviet government promoted the game as a tool for intellectual development and mass education. In the early 1920s, chess clubs and youth programs were created in schools, together with workers’ chess clubs and youth organizations throughout the country. The Soviet Union was arguably the most successful chess-playing country. Soviet Grandmasters dominated the game for the majority of the second half of the century. Out of the 18 World Open Chess Championship final matches that were held in the years 1948-1987, all except for one were won by a Soviet Grandmaster. The USSR produced some of the greatest players the world had ever seen, including Mikhail Tal, Mikhail Botvinnik, Tigran Petrosian, Boris Spassky, Anatoly Karpov, and Garry Kasparov. Soviet players also dominated the women’s sections, with, for example, Georgian players holding the Women’s World Chess Champion title for 30 years in a row.
Even after the fall of the Soviet Union, the newly independent Russian Federation has mostly dominated major international chess tournaments. Currently, more than 200 Grandmasters are Russian, more than double the number from the next-largest nationality (American). Regardless of how undoubtedly great and productive the Soviet and later the Russian school of chess has been in producing great players, it must be acknowledged that not all great Soviet players were of Russian nationality. Countries such as Georgia, Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and other former Soviet nations have also produced some of the greatest talent, both while part of the Soviet Union and later as independent states. Apart from dominating the game on the chessboard itself, it is worth noting that Russians have also managed the International Chess Federation for more than 30 years. In chess politics, Russia has played a dominant role, and for the Russian leadership, the game remains at the top of the agenda. Usually, one of the most effective tools that authoritarian regimes, such as Vladimir Putin’s Russia, use to repair their international image is a phenomenon known as “Sportswashing”. This term describes the practice of sponsoring or hosting a sports team or sporting event to promote a positive public image and distract attention from human rights issues, unethical or illegal activities, and so on. Russia has not used this method only for chess. For example, during the 2014 Euromaidan events in Ukraine and the subsequent Russian occupation of Crimea, the country hosted the XXII Winter Olympics in Sochi. Also, for instance, even while under international sanctions and violating international law by occupying parts of Ukraine, the Russian Federation still hosted the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
As mentioned above, FIDE is the official, undisputed international governing body of chess. It organizes the major tournaments, declares the world champions, establishes and enforces the regulations and code of conduct of the game. Many of its decisions are voted upon by more than 100 National Federations that are a part of it. The International Chess Federation, like its Football counterpart, FIFA, tends to have leaders of controversial origin and decision-making, to say the least. The last 2 presidents of FIDE were citizens of the Russian Federation.
Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, a Russian oligarch, administrator, and politician, was president of the international chess governing body from 1995 to 2018, while also serving as president of the Republic of Kalmykia in the Russian Federation. He was a controversial figure, accused of links to offshore firms that controlled the lucrative rights to the game. He was often accused of rigging the votes, and he was also said to have been acting in the interests of the Russian state. It is notable to acknowledge that during his reign as president of FIDE, the Federation’s sponsorship deals were mostly signed with large Russian enterprises and oligarchs’ businesses, such as the state-owned company Gazprom.
His corruption and ties to the Russian government drew widespread criticism from prominent figures in the chess world. The former world chess champion, now an opposition leader and an exile from Russia, Garry Kasparov, even accused Ilyumzhinov of being a Kremlin envoy to various Authoritarian or Totalitarian regimes around the world. He would often go on world tours and visit leaders, such as Bashar Al-Assad, Muammar Gaddafi, Saddam Hussein, and so on, who were controversial and accused of various human rights violations inside their countries. Perhaps it is because of these controversial visits that in 2015 the United States of America sanctioned Kirsan Ilyumzhinov for alleged financial ties with the dictator of Syria, Bashar Al-Assad. In 2018, he resigned from the presidency after serving as FIDE president for 23 years.
FIDE was instrumental to Russia’s soft power, especially since the events of 2014 in Ukraine, after which the country faced international sanctions. After Ilyumzhinov’s resignation, Vladimir Putin needed a new president inside FIDE, one who would continue promoting Russian interests. Here, Arkady Dvorkovich comes into the story. Dvorkovich was Deputy Prime Minister in Dmitry Medvedev's Cabinet from 21 May 2012 until 7 May 2018. He was also previously an Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation from May 2008 to May 2012. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councilor of the Russian Federation. In 2018, Dvorkovich was elected president of FIDE. Despite criticism from many, it is worth noting that he had a better image and reputation than Ilyumzhinov. At the start of his term, he managed to increase FIDE’s budget, albeit once again with Russian state and Oligarchs’ companies. He also appointed many Russians to key positions in the international chess federation and was accused of continuing to promote Russian state interests in the chess world.
While Dvorkovich’s promotion of Russian soft power may not be a crime, what his country did on 24th February 2022 certainly is. Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion of its neighbor has killed tens of thousands of Ukrainians and has contributed to the suffering of millions. Many Ukrainian athletes of various sports disciplines have also been murdered since the war started. As of September 2024 reports, 21 Ukrainian chess players were killed during the Russian invasion. While specific, widely known top-level Grandmaster names are not explicitly listed in public reports, the Ukrainian Chess Federation says the victims include various players, coaches, and masters. In response to the invasion, many sports disciplines have banned or severely punished Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing at the top levels, and chess has been no exception.
In 2022, despite Dvorkovich being Fide president, the Federation cracked down on Russia. The country was banned from sending athletes to International Chess Olympiads, and Russian players were banned from competing at tournaments under the Russian Flag and Anthem. As a result, several Russian Grandmasters have moved to other countries to play for other Federations, such as Aleksandra Kosternyuk, Alexey Sarana, and Vladimir Fedoseev. While some Russian Grandmasters have publicly denounced the war and moved to different countries, a huge part of the top echelon of Russian chess athletes have not done so, and quite the opposite, supporting the war in Ukraine.
The case of Sergei Karjakin is one of the most infamous. Karjakin is one of the top Russian Grandmasters, who even competed for the World Chess Championship in 2016 against Magnus Carlsen in New York City. Karjakin has stated that: “He has supported the special military operation since the first day”. Since the beginning of the war, Karjakin has engaged in top-level propaganda for the Russian government. He has raised money for the war effort, donated drones to the Russian army, voted for the Russian presidential election in the illegally occupied part of Ukraine , visited the soldiers on the frontline, and even played chess with Russian soldiers in Avdiivka – a city ruined by constant shelling and assaults by the Russian Armed Forces. In 2024, Karjakin even ran for a seat in the occupied Crimean parliament and won his spot in the assembly. This led to the European Union imposing personal sanctions against him.
The current president of FIDE has been trying to maneuver between upholding the restrictions imposed on Russian athletes and maintaining close personal and professional relationships with the Kremlin. At the start of the invasion, Dvorkovich stated that: “His thoughts and prayers were with Ukrainian civilians” and that “wars kill hopes and aspirations”. However, later he also compared the Full-Scale invasion to “a campaign against fascism”. Dvorkovich also broke his promise to introduce a maximum of 2 term limits and was greenlit to seek a third term as FIDE president in 2026.
At the end of 2024, after illegally annexing 4 Ukrainian regions into its federal structures a year earlier, Russia also began to incorporate chess clubs in the occupied Ukrainian territories into the Russian Chess Federation. The country also started organizing tournaments in those occupied territories under the Russian Chess bodies. This was followed by a lawsuit filed by the Ukrainian Chess Federation with the FIDE Ethics Commission, which resulted in a 2-year ban on the Russian Federation. However, the ban was shortly lifted.
Lately, FIDE has started easing some restrictions on Russian players as well. In November of 2025, an all-Russian team was also allowed to compete at the 2025 Women's World Team Championship, despite protests by the Ukrainian Chess Federation and the European Chess Union (ECU). Earlier, in October, the FIDE President, Arkady Dvorkovich, confirmed to Chess.com that a proposal to reinstate Russian teams had been placed on the agenda for the online General Assembly. In December 2025, the International Chess Federation voted to lift the ban on Russian and Belarusian teams, allowing their return to official international competitions, a decision effective for 2026. Youth and disabled squads can immediately use national symbols (flags/anthems), while adult teams must compete under neutral status, pending further IOC consultation.
Just like the Russo-Ukrainian conflict, the future of chess both as a game and as a sphere of geopolitical influence remains unclear. Tensions between upholding sporting neutrality and harsh political realities continue to shape the game’s life and its international governance. As the war in Ukraine continues and global scrutiny of sportswashing intensifies, the role of chess in projecting soft power under Vladimir Putin’s leadership has become increasingly visible to many who are closely familiar with the game. However, ultimately, whether chess can preserve its image as a universal intellectual pursuit or continue to serve as an instrument of political influence will depend on the ability of global chess authorities to enforce transparency, maintain credibility, and resist external political pressures.
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