Timur Turlov — FIDE Presidential Candidate: Program and Ideas
Timur Turlov — Candidate for FIDE President: What Is His Program?
International chess is approaching one of the most important elections in recent years. On September 26, 2026, during the FIDE General Assembly in Samarkand, member federations will elect a new president of the organization. Three presidential tickets have officially been registered so far, and one of them is led by Timur Turlov, President of the Kazakhstan Chess Federation and founder of Freedom Holding Corp. His candidate for Deputy President is five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand.
Turlov initially planned to run for Deputy President as part of Arkady Dvorkovich’s team. However, after Dvorkovich suspended his presidential duties at FIDE, Turlov changed his plans and entered the presidential race himself. His team is now presenting its own vision of what the global chess movement should look like over the next four years.
The main feature of Turlov’s program is its focus not only on the development of chess itself, but also on digitalization, education, and the financial sustainability of national chess federations.
Who Is Timur Turlov?
Turlov is a Kazakh entrepreneur who has headed the Kazakhstan Chess Federation since 2023. During this period, Kazakhstan has significantly strengthened its position on the international chess map. The country has hosted a World Championship match and the FIDE World Team Rapid and Blitz Championships, while continuing to develop school and grassroots chess.
According to figures presented as part of his presidential campaign, organizations associated with Turlov have invested more than $75 million in chess development. Since 2024, he has also served as President of the International School Chess Federation.
Turlov intends to use Kazakhstan’s experience as a kind of model that can be scaled up to the level of FIDE.
His candidacy has also gained additional weight through his choice of Viswanathan Anand as his candidate for Deputy President. Anand has already held the position since 2022 and is now expected to become part of Turlov’s new team.
The Three Main Priorities of Turlov’s Program
Turlov’s program is built around three key areas:
1. digitalization and artificial intelligence;
2. the development of chess in schools;
3. the financial sustainability of national federations.
This structure is revealing. Turlov proposes viewing FIDE not simply as an organization that runs championships and maintains ratings, but as global infrastructure serving players, coaches, federations, and organizers.
A Unified FIDE Digital Platform
One of Turlov’s most ambitious proposals is the creation of a unified FIDE digital ecosystem.
The idea is for every chess player to have a single account linked to their chess history. Such a system could contain:
* the player’s rating;
* tournament history;
* game results;
* participation in online competitions;
* educational materials;
* other data related to the player’s chess career.
Access to the platform should be available to federations regardless of their size or financial resources.
In effect, Turlov is proposing the creation of a kind of “digital chess passport” that would follow a player throughout their career.
The foundation for this idea would be the Kazakh KazChess ID project. Turlov believes that if such a system works at the level of a national federation, it could be scaled up internationally.
Where Does Artificial Intelligence Come In?
In Turlov’s program, AI is not intended to be merely a fashionable technological addition.
It could be used for:
* game analysis;
* assisting coaches;
* player training;
* detecting cheating;
* developing fair-play tools.
During the presidential debate on September 9, Turlov also proposed using biometric identification, including facial recognition, to prevent one person from creating multiple verified accounts for online play. He also advocated developing anti-cheating technologies that could be made available to national federations.
Thus, digitalization in his vision is not simply about creating another FIDE website. It is an attempt to build a unified technological infrastructure for global chess.
Chess in Schools: Making the Game Mass-Market
The second major part of the program is school chess.
Turlov already has practical experience in this field. In Kazakhstan, the Chess in Education program covers more than 1,500 schools and over 60,000 students. According to Turlov, the number of participating schools is expected to continue growing.
Through the International School Chess Federation, he has also been involved in the development of international school competitions.
The logic is straightforward: if FIDE wants to significantly increase the number of chess players, it needs to start not with elite tournaments, but with children.
Chess in schools can address several goals at once:
* attracting new players;
* creating a stronger base for national federations;
* developing the coaching community;
* increasing the number of tournaments;
* making chess part of the education system.
In April, FIDE and ISCF announced the expansion of continental stages of the World School Team Championship, including in Africa and the Americas. Turlov emphasized the importance of expanding school chess in regions with significant growth potential.
Financial Independence for National Federations
The third part of the program is one of the most practical.
Turlov believes national chess federations should learn to create a sustainable financial model, rather than continually relying on support from FIDE, governments, or individual benefactors.
Among the tools he proposes are:
* partnership programs;
* attracting sponsors;
* commercial agreements;
* professional asset management;
* developing their own sources of revenue.
The goal is for federations to gradually evolve from organizations dependent on external funding into structures with stable, independent revenue streams.
Turlov Proposes Increasing FIDE’s Development Fund
During the September 9 debate, the financial model became one of the main points of disagreement between Turlov and another presidential candidate, Jan-Henric Buettner.
Turlov called for increasing FIDE’s development fund to more than $6 million.
According to his proposal, the money should be used for:
* organizing tournaments;
* training arbiters;
* training coaches;
* supporting players’ travel;
* educating federation staff;
* marketing and communications.
At the same time, Turlov acknowledges that FIDE should not depend on a single wealthy individual or one source of funding in the long term.
This is a key part of his concept: invest in development first, then build a more sustainable financial model.
Should FIDE Make Money Itself?
This is another area where Turlov’s position differs from some of his rivals.
He believes FIDE should increase its revenues without turning itself into an ordinary commercial company.
In particular, Turlov supports the development of:
* international sponsorship agreements;
* FIDE intellectual property;
* partnerships with technology companies;
* the commercial potential of chess competitions.
At the same time, he believes FIDE should primarily remain a regulator and a non-profit organization, rather than directly competing with commercial chess platforms.
This is particularly important in the era of Chess.com, Lichess, and other major digital platforms. Turlov proposes working with existing platforms rather than trying to replace them, while also establishing international standards.
What Does Turlov Say About Classical and Rapid Chess?
Another interesting aspect of his position concerns the format of the game.
Turlov is not proposing to abandon classical chess. On the contrary, he considers the traditional format fundamental to professional chess.
However, he recognizes that chess is becoming faster.
For this reason, he is supportive of the development of faster formats, including the emergence of fast classical time controls.
During the debate, Turlov said that the acceleration of the chess world is inevitable and that faster classical formats could be beneficial for players. At the same time, he believes major changes should be discussed with leading chess professionals.
Fighting Cheating: Technology Versus the Human Factor
Anti-cheating has become one of the most important issues in modern competitive chess, particularly as AI continues to develop rapidly.
Turlov proposes strengthening the technological side of the fight against cheating and making relevant tools more accessible to national federations. His idea of unified digital identification should also make it more difficult for one person to create multiple accounts.
However, there is a potentially controversial aspect here: the use of biometrics inevitably raises questions about privacy, data storage, and decision-making procedures.
Implementing such an initiative would therefore require not only technology, but also clear international regulations.
Viswanathan Anand — A Key Part of the Team
The choice of candidate for Deputy President, Viswanathan Anand, deserves particular attention.
For Turlov, Anand represents a way to combine entrepreneurial and managerial experience with the authority of one of the greatest chess players in history.
Anand is already familiar with FIDE from the inside, having served as Deputy President since 2022. Turlov emphasizes that his participation should provide continuity and help preserve the strongest aspects of the current system.
The combination is fairly straightforward: Turlov brings technology, investment, and management; Anand brings chess expertise, authority, and connections with professional players.
The Biggest Debate: Money or System?
This is where Turlov’s presidential program encounters its biggest critical question.
His approach can be summarized as follows: first create opportunities for growth, invest resources, and build infrastructure; then achieve financial sustainability.
His rival Buettner places greater emphasis on FIDE’s commercial independence and reducing its reliance on wealthy individuals.
The difference became particularly clear during the September 9 debate. Turlov described himself as a financial pillar of FIDE in recent years and said he was prepared to help the organization move forward. At the same time, he emphasized that he does not want FIDE to depend on him in the long term.
The dispute, therefore, is not simply about the identity of the next president. It concerns a much more fundamental question: what should the financial model of the world chess organization look like?
How Is Turlov’s Program Different From a Typical Election Platform?
The main strength of his campaign is that he can point to projects that have already been implemented.
Turlov is not starting from zero. He can point to Kazakhstan’s experience in:
* developing school chess;
* hosting international competitions;
* digitalizing the federation;
* making large-scale investments;
* attracting major partners;
* creating international school chess infrastructure.
This is why his program looks more like an attempt to scale an existing model that is already working than a collection of abstract campaign promises.
At the same time, scaling national experience across almost 200 federations is a much more complicated task. Different countries have very different budgets, infrastructure, legislation, and levels of chess development. The success of the program will therefore depend on how flexibly Turlov can adapt the Kazakh experience to the international environment.
What Awaits FIDE on September 26?
The FIDE presidential election will take place on September 26, 2026, in Samarkand, as part of the organization’s General Assembly. Each FIDE member represented at the Assembly has one vote.
Three presidential tickets have officially been registered so far:
* Jan-Henric Buettner — President, Malcolm Pein — Deputy President;
* Vadim Rosenstein — President, Gordon Tang — Deputy President;
* Timur Turlov — President, Viswanathan Anand — Deputy President.
Turlov is therefore going into the election with more than a promise to increase funding for chess. His program is built around the idea of a modern, digital, globally integrated FIDE that simultaneously develops school chess and helps federations become financially sustainable.
Conclusion
Timur Turlov’s campaign offers FIDE a fairly clear formula: digital infrastructure + artificial intelligence + school chess + financially sustainable federations.
The most ambitious element is arguably the idea of a unified digital platform that could bring together ratings, tournament histories, education, and online services for chess players around the world. His ambition to transfer Kazakhstan’s experience in school chess to the international level is equally significant.
But one major question remains open: can a model based on large-scale investment and active private-sector involvement eventually develop into a truly independent and sustainable system?
The chess world will begin to get an answer after the election in Samarkand. Turlov’s campaign already demonstrates that the battle over FIDE’s future in 2026 is no longer only about the chessboard — it is about what the infrastructure of global chess will look like over the next decade.