The people behind the moves
Meet the masters
Explore the lives, ideas, rivalries, and playing legacies of chess history’s defining players.
No. 1Wilhelm Steinitz
1836–1900
First official World Chess Champion, holding the title from 1886 to 1894 after defeating Johannes Zukertort.
No. 2Emanuel Lasker
1868–1941
Second World Chess Champion, holding the title for 27 years (1894–1921), the longest reign in chess history.
No. 3José Raúl Capablanca
1888–1942
Third World Chess Champion, reigning from 1921 to 1927 after defeating Emanuel Lasker.
No. 4Alexander Alekhine
1892–1946
Fourth World Chess Champion, holding the title twice: 1927–1935 and 1937–1946.
No. 5Max Euwe
1901–1981
Fifth World Chess Champion, holding the title from 1935 to 1937.
No. 6Mikhail Botvinnik
1911–1995
Sixth World Chess Champion, winning the title in 1948 and holding it, with interruptions, until 1963 — a total of three reigns: 1948–1957, 1958–1960, 1961–1963.