“Magnus was dead lost,” the commentators declared as Fabiano Caruana closed in on the world title. It is one of many unforgettable moments in the fourth episode of the Freestyle Chess documentary series The Next Move, premiering today on the Freestyle Chess website and YouTube.
From December, it will also air on North American sports network Game+.
The episode takes viewers inside the inaugural FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship, held in February 2026 at the WEISSENHAUS Private Nature Luxury Resort in Germany. In a dramatic final, Caruana (USA), the longtime world No. 2, pushes Magnus Carlsen, the player who has dominated world chess like no other over the past decade and a half, to the brink of defeat. The commentators had already written Carlsen off: “It’s check, check, check and you’re busted.” But once again, Caruana got only to the brink, and Carlsen took the title.
“Most people see elite chess players as calculating machines. The Next Move shows who they really are: nervous before a final, crushed by a defeat and, as it turns out, very human with a pool cue in their hands,” says Freestyle Chess CEO Dr. Andreas Walker. “That’s the side of chess fans almost never get to see, and it’s exactly why we made this series.”
The episode also shows how seriously the world’s best now take the format. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Freestyle will overtake classical chess in maybe 5 to 10 years,” says Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov.
Away from the board, The Next Move reveals a personal, rarely seen side of the players, and proves that being a chess genius doesn’t make you a master of every game. “Last evening we played billiards, which I’m certainly not the most talented at,” admits Hans Niemann. Caruana puts it even more bluntly: “We played some pool, which didn’t go great for any of us, cause none of us can play.”
Viewers also witness a first for women in Freestyle Chess: an exhibition match in which Kazakhstan’s Bibisara Assaubayeva, three-time Women’s World Blitz Champion, beat former Women’s World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk 2½:1½ to earn a place at the next World Championship. In 2027, WEISSENHAUS will host the FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship with both an Open and a Women’s event.
Watch episode four now: Weissenhaus 2026
