Changes in Laws of Chess

Chess arbiters are obligated to stay updated on changes in regulations. Players often only learn about these changes during the arbiter's intervention.

Changes in Laws of Chess
Written by
Maciej Cybulski
Published on
Mar 19, 2024
Read time
1 min

On the International Chess Federation (FIDE) website, one can find, among other things, the Laws of Chess - both the current ones in 2024 and four archival versions from the previous decade.

Where should the chessclock be placed?

What has changed in recent years? Many changes concern the broad issue of illegal moves - various types of irregularities and the consequences of their execution depending on the rate of play. Many active chess players vividly remember situations where they lost due to making the first illegal move in blitz. Later, the same penalty applied to rapid chess as well. Currently, the second illegal move results in defeat - regardless of the rate of play.

Rapid, 10'+4". In this position, the player with black pieces moves the pawn to e1 and presses the clock. The player with white pieces claims a second illegal move. The Arbiter:

The current Laws of Chess span several dozen pages and consist of over 12,000 words and over 70,000 characters. We recommend this reading to everyone and even more encourage testing your knowledge in one of the quizzes we have prepared.

Quiz for Chess Arbiters #1
Quiz for Chess Arbiters #2
Quiz for Chess Arbiters #3

Which of the following situations ends the game immediately?

Could you organize a chess tournament? Do you know the required lighting in the playing hall or the size chess pieces should have? Test your skills in the organizer's quiz as well!

Quiz for Chess Organisers #1

On April 1st, 2024, new Tie-Break Regulations come into effect, introducing many changes such as the abolition of the virtual opponent and a deep change in the management of unplayed games and matches.

Tie-Break Quiz #1

Buchholz (BH):

Tie-Break Quiz #2

Try It Out

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