Chess professionals are now fortunate enough. In one of the recent chess tournaments, the winners were rewarded with crypto and an NFT trophy. This can be considered as an example of how crypto agencies are going ahead to sponsor prodigious sports events. In May 2021, the ‘Meltwater Champions Chess Tour’ continued for 9 days. FTX offshoot cryptocurrency exchange financed and promoted the FTX Crypto Cup. This was the first time winners were awarded cryptocurrency prizes. Chess Tournament & Crypto The tournament was initiated with 16 chess grand players. All these players played online on the Chess24 ‘Playzone.’ The eight grand players succeed in the knockout phase. Magnus Carlsen defeated Teimour Rajabov and Wesley So beat Ian Nepomniachtchi to grab the position into the finals. Nepomniachtchi grabbed the third position by defeating Rajabov and secured $25,000 plus 0.25 BTC from FTX. The final round of the chess tournament reported an increased clash. Carlsen won the chess game & secured $60,000 and 0.6 BTC from the tournament sponsor. The 31-year-old Norwegian grabbed a place for the final of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour in Oct 2021. He won $100,000 with a non-fungible token (NFT) trophy. Planning for the Tournament The planning of the tour was executed by the Play Magnus Group. Applicants wrestling for the FTX Crypto Cup defied $100,000 in BTC & $320,000 cash prize. For the last 10 years, Norwegian Magnus Carlsen has be...
