Chess Champ Files $100 Million Lawsuit Against Magnus Carlsen and Chess.com Over Cheating Allegations

The ongoing chess dishonest scandal now has some greenback indicators hooked up to it. On Wednesday, burgeoning chess grasp Hans Neimann filed a $100 Million criticism in opposition to five-time World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen over a number of hints and outright allegations of dishonest.

The defamation lawsuit filed in Missouri district courtroom takes intention at not simply Carlsen however at Chess.com and fellow chess Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, whom Niemann’s legal professional’s declare was “acting in collusion” with Carlsen and Chess.com to amplify the dishonest allegations. Alongside defamation, Niemann alleges his critics dedicated an illegal boycott of him and his video games when Chess.com banned the younger participant from upcoming tournaments and the corporate’s on-line platform.

Gizmodo reached out to Carlsen by means of his father and supervisor Henrik Carlsen however didn’t instantly hear again. We additionally despatched a message to Nakamura’s staff, and we are going to replace this put up if we hear again.

As far as Niemann goes, the younger chess grasp had a quite simple assertion on his Twitter.

All this hubbub about chess dishonest began in September when 31-year-old Norwegian Grandmaster Carlsen withdrew from the St. Louis Sinquefield Cup within the third spherical after dropping to Niemann. That withdrawal triggered sufficient of a stir throughout the chess group that folks started to take a position it had one thing to do along with his younger opponent. Carlsen threw extra logs on the hearth with a tweet that appeared to indicate Niemann wasn’t on the extent.

The lawsuit has its personal interpretation of the occasions that unfolded, stating:

“Notorious for his inability to cope with defeat, Carlsen snapped. Enraged that the young Niemann, fully 12 years his junior, dared to disrespect the “King of Chess,” and fearful that the younger prodigy would additional blemish his multi-million greenback model by beating him once more, Carlsen viciously and maliciously retaliated in opposition to Niemann by falsely accusing Niemann, with none proof, of someway dishonest throughout their in-person sport and demanding that the organizers of the Sinquefield Cup instantly disqualify Niemann from the match.”

The lawsuit additional claims Carlsen used his “media empire” to blacklist Niemann from tournaments and defend his personal Play Magnus model, which owns the chess web sites Chess24.com, ichess.web, and chessable.com. Niemann’s legal professionals declare that Chess.com’s recently-announced $82 million buyout of Play Magnus was a part of the rationale why Chess.com has knocked Niemann so laborious on the dishonest allegations.

In an e-mail assertion supplied to Gizmodo, Chess.com’s attorneys Nima Mohebbi and Jamie Wine of Latham & Watkins, LLP wrote “Hans confessed publicly to cheating online in the wake of the Sinquefield Cup, and the resulting fallout is of his own making. As stated in its October 2022 report, Chess.com had historically dealt with Hans’ prior cheating privately, and was forced to clarify its position only after he spoke out publicly. There is no merit to Hans’ allegations, and Chess.com looks forward to setting the record straight on behalf of its team and all honest chess players.”

For weeks because the chess scandal unfolded, Carlsen stored relatively silent about any particular allegations, although he stored hinting at it by means of tweets and feedback. Finally, on the finish of September, Carlsen gave a full assertion clarifying he believed that Niemann “has cheated more—and more recently—than he has publicly admitted.” The elder chess grasp pointed to Niemann’s over-the-board progress being “unusual” whereas he was “outplaying me as black in a way I think only a handful of players can do.”

In an early September interview, Niemann admitted he cheated at “random games on Chess.com” when he was 12- and 16-years-old. He additionally accused Carlsen and Nakamura of attempting to hurt his profession and inflicting different Twitter customers to dogpile him.

Then in October, Chess.com, probably the most prolific chess on-line chess platforms on the planet, claimed in a 72-page report Niemann “likely cheated” in over 100 on-line video games, way more than the younger chess participant had beforehand admitted to. The firm additionally revoked his invitation to play within the Chess.com Global Championship. The lawsuit calls this report “defamatory” however identified that Chess.com admitted it didn’t have proof for Niemann dishonest in over-the-board, AKA in-person, chess.

Nakamura has been considered one of Niemann’s harshest critics, alleging in a number of Twitch streams and movies on his YouTube channel that there was one thing routinely off about the best way the 19-year-old chess grasp performs.

The lawsuit claims Nakamura has had an “acrimonious relationship” with the 19-year-old chess grasp from once they each streamed for Chess.com. Niemann’s legal professionals argue Carlsen “enlisted” Nakamura as a co-conspirator to knock Niemann by means of movies and tweeted statements.

The lawsuit claims the accusations have “destroyed” Niemann’s life, limiting the variety of tournaments he can attend and hindering his potential to earn cash from tournaments’ money prizes. The lawsuit additional states that Niemann can’t even get a job as a chess trainer as a result of his fame is in tatters. Whether all it will actually be definitely worth the $100 million price ticket may rely absolutely on legal professionals proving these materials and emotional impacts on Niemann’s life.