Magnus Carlsen: From Chess to Poker? World Champion's Next Move

Magnus Carlsen, the reigning World Chess Champion, has decided not to defend his title against Ian Nepomniachtchi. The 31-year-old Norwegian announced this decision on International Chess Day during the first episode of the Unibet-sponsored podcast, ‘The Magnus Effect’.

Carlsen, who has been the number one ranked player for 11 years and is a five-time World Champion, expressed his lack of interest in the grueling world championship cycle. He stated, “I feel I don't have a lot to gain, I don't particularly like it [the world championship matches], and although I'm sure a match would be interesting for historical reasons and all of that, I don't have any inclination to play and I will simply not play the match.”

Despite stepping away from the world championship, Carlsen has been actively involved in poker. He recently participated in the World Series of Poker, where he took a shot at the Main Event but crashed out on day 1c. Additionally, he featured in a $20k buy-in cash game with Phil Ivey. Carlsen’s poker journey includes a deep run in the Norwegian Poker Championships in April, where he finished in 25th spot out of 1050 runners, earning his first official Hendon Mob cash of €5160 ($5,681). Daniel Negreanu even did a hand breakdown on one of Magnus’ huge bluffs at the tournament.