Chess Great Magnus Carlsen Quits Tournament Over Jeans Debate

A pair of jeans removed the top chess player from the world championship tournament.

Magnus Carlsen celebrates after winning 6th TATA Steel Chess India Tournament. | Dipayan Bose/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Magnus Carlsen, the world champion chess player from 2013 to '23, was disqualified from the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in New York for his attire.

Carlsen wore jeans at the tournament because he had a lunch meeting before his round Friday and had to change quickly, according to a report from ESPN.

The International Chess Federation (Fédération Internationale des Échecs) issued Carlsen a $200 fine and asked him to change to align with its dress code regulations. Carlsen declined, which took him out of the tournament.

Chess great Magnus Carlsen quit the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in New York after governing body FIDE barred him for wearing jeans. https://t.co/wsfVaaBUj2

— ESPN (@espn) December 28, 2024

"I put on a shirt, jacket and honestly, like, I didn't even think about jeans, even changed my shoes," Carlsen told Take Take Take. "I didn't even think about it."

"First of all, I got a fine, which is fine, and then I got a warning that I would not be paired if I didn't go change my clothes. They said that I could do it after the third round today. I said, 'I'll change tomorrow if that's OK; I didn't even realize it today,' but they said, 'Well, you have to change now.' At that point it became a bit of a matter of principle for me."

Carlsen, one of the greatest players in chess history, said he wouldn't appeal the ruling which took him out of the event.

"Honestly, I am too old at this point to care too much," he said.

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