Aeroflot will traditionally serve as the general and organizational partner of the Chess Federation of Russia for the XXI Aeroflot Open tournament. The legendary international chess festival will take place from February 27 to March 6, 2026, in Moscow, at The Carlton, Moscow hotel.
This year, the festival will be held in a “fast classic” format. Starting in 2026, tournaments using a time control of 60 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move (60+30) may be recognised as standard chess events. Aeroflot Open 2026 will be the first open festival approved by the FIDE Qualification Commission to be conducted under the new standard time control.
The festival program will include three tournaments:
- Tournament A (Aeroflot Open): for players with a rating of 2300 or higher as of January 1, 2026;
- Tournament B (Aeroflot Open: Children): for boys and girls under the age of 13 (born in 2014 or later);
- Tournament C (Aeroflot Open: Legends): the list of participants will be formed through personal invitations issued by the Organizing Committee.
The festival features a total guaranteed prize fund of 20,000,000 Russian rubles. Participant registration is open on the official Aeroflot Open website.
Aeroflot Open has been held since 2002. In 2004, it was included in the Guinness Book as the biggest chess tournament in the world. The annual competition was suspended in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2024, with the support of Aeroflot, the festival was revived in an updated format: for the first time, the tournament featured not only renowned grandmasters but also young athletes.