Magnus Carlsen Welcomes Chess Prodigy Praggnanandhaa to Team Liquid Ahead of Esports World Cup

Chennai: Chess grandmaster Praggnanandhaa after being felicitated by Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin at his camp office, in Chennai. (PTI Photo) (PTI06_12_2025_000215B)

Five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen has officially welcomed 19-year-old R Praggnanandhaa to Team Liquid. This announcement comes ahead of the Esports World Cup, scheduled to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 29 to August 1.

Team Liquid announced the addition of the young chess prodigy on X, stating: “Before chess conquered the world, it was born in India. For centuries, India has shaped the game. Now, it shapes the future. Praggnanandhaa R. carries that legacy forward — and today, he joins ours. Welcome to Team Liquid. The future of chess starts here.”

Carlsen responded to the announcement with a touch of humor, writing, "Whole lot of letters in Praggnanandhaa, but no «I». Welcome to the team."

Praggnanandhaa also expressed his enthusiasm, saying: “Super excited to be part of Team Liquid! From India to the world, let’s take chess to the next level together!”

Praggnanandhaa is now the fourth Indian chess player to join an esports franchise, following in the footsteps of Arjun Erigaisi, Nihal Sarin, and Aravindh Chithambaram.

Arjun Erigaisi was previously signed by Generation Gaming (Gen.G), while Nihal Sarin and Aravindh Chithambaram are on the roster of the India-based S8UL.

Arjun Erigaisi has already secured his spot at the Esports World Cup, which will feature 16 participants. Confirmed participants also include Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana, who are among the twelve grandmasters with guaranteed spots.

Other notable players include Hikaru Nakamura and Alireza Firouzja (both with Team Falcons), Ian Nepomniachtchi (Aurora), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (NAVI), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Team Vitality), Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Twisted Minds), Wei Yi (Weibo), Vladislav Artemiev (Team Spirit), and Vladimir Fedoseev.

R Praggnanandhaa will be competing under the Team Liquid banner in the Last Chance Qualifiers. He will be vying for one of the four remaining places against some of the biggest names in chess, including reigning world champion Ding Liren (LGD), Wesley So (NAVI), Oleksandr Bortnyk (NAVI), Anish Giri (Team Secret), and Daniil Dubov (Team Spirit).