The final countdown is ongoing for the landmark 30th-anniversary edition of the Bergen Spillfestival summer festival, scheduled to run from July 23 through August 8, 2026.
Transforming Bergen into a massive hub for competitive and casual gaming, the extensive festival features a diverse lineup including board games, card games, quizzes, dice games, puzzles, Scrabble, gaming, and LEGO.
While the festival offers multiple gaming disciplines, it stands as a premier destination for the regional chess community, offering a packed schedule of classical, rapid, blitz, and variant tournaments. To lower barriers for the next generation of players, all activities within the children’s and youth sections are completely free of charge.
The competitive chess action kicks off immediately during the opening weekend with three consecutive FIDE-rated tournaments, alongside a special promotional event featuring one of Norway’s top players:
- July 23: The Bergen Open Rapid Championship officially opens the competitive calendar.
- July 24–26: The Main Tournament takes place over three days, focusing on classical long chess.
- July 27: The Bergen Open Blitz Chess Championship. Ahead of the tournament, Grandmaster Frode Urkedal will test local talent by conducting a simultaneous exhibition.
The 2026 program features two separate, free-to-attend youth festivals packed with interactive entertainment, puzzles, and gaming:
- July 27–29 (Nesttun): Featuring a dedicated Children’s Grand Prix chess tournament on Monday, alongside gaming stations, LEGO building, quizzes, and Yatzy.
- July 30–August 2 (Torgallmenningen): Moving to the heart of the city, this section features expanded chess activities, a large lightning lottery, dedicated LEGO exhibitions, and building competitions.
As the festival progresses into August, the focus shifts toward specialized formats, fast-paced marathons, and social variants tailored for adult participants:
- July 31: Social Chess night, featuring informal over-the-board play alongside the popular Hand & Brain team variant.
- August 1: The 8th edition of the historic Hanseatic Chess Championship.
- August 6: The Marathon Blitz Chess tournament, testing endurance across 19 consecutive rounds.
- August 7: The official Norwegian Championship in Café Chess.
- August 8: The tournament schedule concludes with the Bergen Championship in Fischer Random Chess.
The complete, day-by-day festival schedule and registration details across all gaming categories can be accessed via the official platform at bergenspillfestival.no/programme.
