Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2026
GCL Season 4 preview: What to expect as the world’s top players head to Bengaluru
After Dubai, London and Mumbai, Season 4 will take place in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru, from 5th to 13th September. With India being one of the fastest-growing chess markets and following an unprecedented response to Season 3 in Mumbai, hosting the event in the country for the second time in a row builds on strong Indian momentum in world chess.
This is where the “India exports not only chess talent but also a chess format” narrative belongs.
Season 4 will see Magnus Carlsen’s return to the competition. World Cup winner and India’s rising woman chess star Divya Deshmukh joins the GCL for the first time, while Viswanathan Anand moves from Ganges Grandmasters, where he spent the first three seasons, to PBG Alaskan Knights.
The unusually strong generational pairings, the Road2GCL event prior to the season, a more ambitious technology/fan layer, and growing outside investment in franchises point to an exciting new GCL Season ahead.