Las Vegas Freestyle will take place July 16–20, 2025, at the Wynn Las Vegas, specifically in the 50,000-square-foot Lafite Ballroom. It’s the third leg of the 2025 tour – after Paris Freestyle and Grenke Freestyle – and the first Freestyle Chess event in the U.S. open to live spectators. It features 16 top grandmasters in a five-day event with a group stage (round-robin, 10+10 time control) followed by a double-elimination knockout (30+30 for key stages). The prize fund is $750,000, contributing to the tour’s points system to crown the first Freestyle Chess Champion in Cape Town. Live games will be daily on Chessdom.
This is the Freestyle Las Vegas Black Group round robin with GM Hikaru Nakamura (2818), GM Fabiano Caruana (2804), GM Arjun Erigaisi (2758), GM Leinier Dominguez Perez (2749), GM Hans Moke Niemann (2722), GM Santosh Gujrathi Vidit (2713), GM Ray Robson (2687), GM Samuel Sevian (2683). Note: all ratings are Freestyle ratings. See the White group here
The Las Vegas tournament introduces a 16-player format with a double elimination structure. After an initial group stage with rapid time control (10 minutes plus 10 seconds per move), the players enter a championship or placement bracket depending on their results. Players eliminated from the top bracket cannot return to the final – at most, they can finish in third place. All knockout rounds will be played with a 30+30 classical time control, counting toward the official Freestyle rating.
The format guarantees that every match has consequences – win and move forward, lose twice and you’re out. It’s a structure that intensifies the competition and rewards consistency under pressure.
