Lei and Zhu the top seeds, 107 participants
Next Saturday, July 5th, Batumi, Georgia`s second-largest city and a recognized European destination, will host the new edition of the FIDE Women`s World Cup. This tournament is one of the key events in the global chess calendar.
Georgia boasts a rich history and strong traditions in women`s chess. The country has produced many legendary players and consistently demonstrates high-level results on the world stage.
As the birthplace of chess legends like Nona Gaprindashvili (the first woman to be awarded the Grandmaster title) and Maia Chiburdanidze (who was the youngest Women`s World Champion at the time), Georgia is proud of its tradition of women excelling in chess. The country has a strong national team and impressive international achievements. Batumi, a picturesque city on the Black Sea coast that hosted the 2018 Chess Olympiad, will once again gather the world`s strongest female chess players to compete for the prestigious title.
As noted by FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky, the tournament will be held at the five-star Grand Bellagio Convention & Casino Hotel, located just 3 km from the airport. The venue is already active, hosting over 300 young chess players from nearly 40 countries competing in the FIDE World Cup U-8, U-10, U-12 events.
Structure and Prizes: What`s at Stake?
In addition to an impressive total prize fund of USD 691,250 (with USD 50,000 going to the winner), the FIDE World Cup awards three spots to the FIDE Women`s Candidates Tournament, scheduled for the first half of 2026. Thus, the tournament is a crucial qualifying stage for the next World Championship cycle.
The tournament will be played as a seven-round knockout. Each round will consist of two classical games, plus a tiebreak if necessary.
Unlike previous years, the Women`s World Cup will not be held concurrently with the FIDE World Cup 2025, which is scheduled for November.
Players to Watch
A total of 107 of the world`s strongest female players from 46 different federations are set to participate, including 17 players from the current top 20 world rankings.
Bearing in mind the knockout format and the fact that the rating gap between the top twenty players is only about 100 points (meaning it`s anyone`s game!), here is a list of players to watch closely. It includes both seasoned professionals and promising young talents.
Lei Tingjie (2552), Zhu Jiner (2547), and Tan Zhongyi (2546) – the Chinese Grandmasters occupy the top three spots in the starting list and represent a significant force. Each of them possesses enough strength and experience to go far in the tournament bracket. Tan Zhongyi, who previously finished third in Sochi 2021 and fourth in Baku 2023, is enthusiastic about the tournament. “Batumi is a beautiful city, and before diving into the intense World Cup competition, I plan to enjoy the local sights. I`m really looking forward to visiting Batumi!” she shared.
Nurgyul Salimova, the silver medalist at the 2023 World Cup in Baku, is another rising star to watch. Reflecting on her journey, she says, “Baku was a significant moment for me. Now I am focused on Batumi and ready to accept the challenge!”
Humpy Koneru (rated 2543, seed number four) recently won the Pune Grand Prix. The Indian team secured gold at the Budapest Olympiad in 2024 – will Koneru, Harika, Vaishali, or Divya be able to maintain their good form in Batumi?
Aleksandra Goryachkina (current rating 2533), the fourth highest-rated female player in history, will aim to defend her World Cup champion title won in Baku in 2023.
Alexandra Kosteniuk (rated 2474) has an impressive career marked by numerous important victories, including the Women`s World Cup in Sochi in 2021.
Anna Muzychuk (rated 2535), the elder of the two Muzychuk sisters, is in excellent form in 2025, having won two Women`s Grand Prix events (in Austria and Cyprus), as well as the recent Norway Chess Women`s tournament. “I`m looking forward to participating in the World Cup in Batumi! I`ve been to Georgia many times – it`s a very hospitable country with rich chess traditions and delicious cuisine,” she remarked.
Carissa Yip (rated 2431), the 21-year-old US number one player, has just won the Cairns Cup 2025 tournament, fulfilling a Grandmaster norm and winning USD 65,000!
Divya Deshmukh (rated 2463), the 19-year-old player, has already won three Olympic gold medals and recently defeated world number one Hou Yifan in the World Rapid Team Championship!
Furthermore, all the top Georgian players – Dzagnidze, Batsiashvili, Arabidze, Javakhishvili, and Khotenashvili – have serious chances of making a deep run in the tournament. Playing on home turf, they will undoubtedly receive strong support from the local fans.
Interesting First Round Pairings
86 out of 107 players will start the tournament in the first round, while the top 21 seeded players will receive a bye and join the winners directly in the second round.
The rating difference between players in the first round is quite significant, so few major upsets are expected. Nevertheless, every tournament brings a few surprises when an underdog defeats a favorite, but it`s very difficult to predict exactly which boards this might happen on.
Nevertheless, due to the specific tournament format, the closest rating matchups in the first round occur on the last boards. One might speculate that most upsets will happen on boards 30 through 43.
How to Follow
The tournament will be streamed live on FIDE`s YouTube channel with expert commentary from GM Valeriane Gaprindashvili, WGM Almira Skripchenko (from round two onwards), and WGM Keti Tsatsalashvili (for round one). Almira shared her excitement:
Elton Marrow