Javohir Sindorov advances to FIDE World Cup final (video)

At the 2025 FIDE World Cup in Goa, India, Uzbek chess players Javohir Sindorov and Nodirbek Yoqubboev faced each other in the semifinal. Sindorov emerged victorious, securing a place in the World Cup final.

Sindorov defeated Yoqubboev with a score of 2.5–1.5. In the final, he will face China’s Wei Yi, who triumphed over Russian grandmaster Andrey Esipenko. Yoqubboev and Esipenko will compete for third place.

The top three finishers in the FIDE World Cup earn a spot in the Candidates Tournament for the 2026 World Chess Championship. With this victory, Sindorov has qualified to participate in that prestigious event.

This marks the first time at least one Uzbek chess player will participate in the 2026 Candidates Tournament. Considering the third-place match, Yoqubboev still has a chance to qualify.

The Candidates Tournament will be held in Cyprus from March 28 to April 16, 2026. So far, the following players have qualified:

•  Fabiano Caruana (USA)
•  Anish Giri (Netherlands)
•  Matthias Blübaum (Germany)
•  Hikaru Nakamura (USA)
•  Javohir Sindorov (Uzbekistan)
•  Wei Yi (China)

The winner of the Candidates Tournament will challenge reigning World Chess Champion Gukesh D. (India) for the world title.

Earlier this year, from May 20 to 26, Sindorov won the “Tepe Sigeman & Co Chess 2025” tournament in Malmö, Sweden.