Chess Bundesliga

History

The Bundesliga is the top division of German team chess and is widely called the strongest chess league in the world. There is no limit on foreign players, so the leading clubs field world-class grandmasters alongside German players; Magnus Carlsen made his debut for FC St. Pauli in 2025.

The league was founded in 1974 in four regional groups, with a final for the national title. Since 1980 it has been a single 16-team division. OSG Baden-Baden are the record champions with 16 titles, all won between 2006 and 2023; only SG Solingen in 2016 broke the run. SC Viernheim won in 2024 and 2026, with Düsseldorfer SK in between.

How it works

Who plays. Sixteen clubs, each registering up to 16 players plus two juniors for the season. Eight play in each match, on eight boards.

The format. Every team plays every other team once, 15 rounds in all. From 2026/27 the rounds are played over five weekends of three rounds each, with the last weekend at a single venue (Neuwied, 2 to 4 April 2027). Players have 90 minutes for 40 moves and 30 more for the rest of the game, with 30 seconds added per move.

What is at stake. A match win is worth two match points and a draw one; board points only separate teams level on match points. The champion is German team champion, and three teams are relegated to the 2. Bundesliga.

Last checked 19 October 2026 against the 2026/27 season.