A guide to the largest chess tournaments in Ireland

Have you ever considered taking part in a chess tournament in Ireland but don't know where to start? Maybe you're an Irish player ready to start playing tournaments or maybe you're an international player willing to branch out and try a tournament in a new country? Either way, let me tell you about the largest events, so you have a good idea about where to start.

Tournaments in Ireland are organised under the auspices of the Irish Chess Union (ICU) and its website is very helpful in showing upcoming events. You can sign up and pay for most events in two clicks on its website and it also shows everyone who has already signed up, which is a useful way to know how many people will attend and what their rating is. It is worth noting that most people sign up last minute, so a typical event might only have 5 confirmed attendees a month in advance, 50 the week before and then 100 sign ups by the time it begins.

The ICU has its own rating system for tournaments and if you are traveling from abroad, your FIDE or national equivalent will be used to estimate your level. Some tournaments contribute towards the FIDE rating of all players, others only provide FIDE ratings for the higher levels, so it is worth checking the details of the tournament in advance.

I don't have any other countries to compare it with, but chess in Ireland seems to be in a healthy position and growing stronger. Participation is up in most tournaments since Covid and some tournaments have reached record highs. There is a lot of new unrated players bringing fresh blood to the scene and there is a large number of juniors, meaning there is a good spread across age demographics.

As Ireland is a small country, all the tournaments mentioned here are national tournaments, we don't have levels of regional or qualifying tournaments.

Bunratty Chess Festival

Without a doubt, Bunratty has to be at the top of the list for not only is it the largest tournament, but it is also the only tournament that gets international coverage. In 2020, it had 356 participants and was reported on by Chessbase, Chess.com (which said it had an "excellent reputation") and even The Guardian (which called it "one of the best weekend congresses in Europe"). On the other hand, Chessbase previously called it "the drinking tournament" and its annual report on the event usually spends as much time talking about drinking as it does about chess (I don't know whether that says more about the tournament or the journalist).

Other tournaments are comprised almost entirely of Irish players, but Bunratty is the exception and most of the top players come from abroad, with previous winners including Nigel Short, Wesley So and Peter Svidler. This is all the more impressive considering Bunratty is a small village whose only noticeable feature is a large castle that is a popular destination for school trips (but it is close to Limerick City).

Unfortunately, Bunratty has not been held in person in three years, it was twice moved online due to Covid and this year it was cancelled due to the unavailability of the hotel. There are provisional plans to hold it in February 2024, but it has not yet been confirmed.

The Irish Junior Championship

The Irish Junior Championship 2023 (Credit: Irish Chess Union)

I don't think anything could make you feel more optimistic for the future of chess in Ireland that the fact that the largest chess tournament in the last three years was for juniors. The Irish Junior Championship this year attracted a massive 294 players (double the number in 2019) across 5 sections ranging from under 8 to under 19. The largest category was the under 12's which had 71 players.

Most participants were new and unrated players, but several already have impressively high ratings and there could be more than a few future greats among their number. The greatest fear of many adult chess players is to face an unrated junior, because they are often far stronger than they seem. There are plans to hold the event in April next year, but this has not yet been confirmed.

Irish Rapid & Blitz Championship

Irish Rapid & Blitz Championship 2023 (Credit Irish Chess Union)

During the Covid lockdown, there was a boom in people playing online chess and this has transferred to over the board as well. In 2019, the rapid and blitz tournament was a small affair with only 40 participants. When it returned in 2022, it was the largest tournament of the year with 291 participants, an enormous level of growth.

The 7 rounds of 10+5 rapid was somewhat more popular than the 11 rounds of 3+2 blitz, but large numbers of players competed in both events, which had a prize fund of €1,400. Part of the reason for the large number of participants was probably the fact that the whole event was held on a single day, with each round immediately following the last.

The ICU only gives ratings for classical chess, but the tournament did count towards earning a FIDE rapid and blitz rating. There are provisional plans to hold the next event in September.

Kilkenny Congress

If you assumed that all major chess events in Ireland were held in Dublin (like I did), then the Kilkenny Congress is here to prove you wrong. In 2022, 256 players competed across 4 sections for a total prize fund of €4,500.

The next Kilkenny Congress will be held from the 24-26th of November.

The Irish Championship

Some of the participants of the 2022 Irish Championship: First Weekender (including myself) (Credit: Irish Chess Union)

The national championship of Ireland, which awards the title of Irish Champion and Irish Women's Champion, is not one event, but a series of events held over two weeks. The main event to decide the Irish Champion has been running for over 100 years and is a 9 day event, with one round each day. Participants must be registered with the Irish federation and rated at least 1900. The women's event is open to players of all levels and is the only women-only major event in Irish chess.

For lower rated players, there is the First Weekender, with sections for players rated 1300-1900 and those rated under 1400. If you want an open tournament, there is not one, but two options. The Open Weekday is 5 rounds over 5 days, while the Open Weekender is 5 rounds on the weekend. There are also rapid and blitz events.

Gonzaga Charity Classic

Gonzaga Charity Class (Credit: Gonzaga College)

182 players participated across 3 sections in this tournament with a prize fund of €3,500 in 2023, with all proceeds going to charity.

The event will next be held from the 24-26th of January 2024.

Galway Chess Congress

The next largest event is from my native Galway, where 160 players competed in 2023 for a prize fund €2,700. The event used to be divided into 3 sections, but due to the influx of unrated players since Covid, in 2022 it was an open event and in 2023 it was a hybrid event. You can read here about my experience at this year's congress.

There is no word yet on the plans for 2024, but the tournament will presumably take place in March as it usually does.

John Bolger Cup

This is a new event only in its 2nd year, but it has already become one of the largest tournaments in Ireland. In February this year, 152 people competed in Dublin for a prize fund of €4,500. I wrote about my experience at the event here.

The date for next year's event has not yet been announced, but previously the event took place in February and March.

City of Dublin

Attracting 151 participants when last held in 2021, the City of Dublin tournament is returning on the 13-15th of September. There will be 4 sections and more information will be available closer to the date.

Sligo Spring Tournament

Sligo Spring Tournament 2023, where all players had a name placard beside their board (Credit: Sligo Chess Club)

I've never taken part in this event, but someone who did highly recommended it to me and praised it for a high level of professionalism. They were particularly impressed with the name placards for all players and the live broadcast of all boards. The event had Chessable as a partner and received some notice in local media. In 2023, 139 players competed for a prize fund of €3,425.

The dates for the 2024 tournament has already been confirmed, it will take place from the 2-4th of February.

Other Events

Those are the ten largest tournaments, but obviously there are far more, such as:

• DCU Open (a new event that was held for the first time this year)
• Limerick Open (contains an open and under 1400 section, will be held 28-30th October)
• Cavan Congress (returned for the first time in over 40 years, with provisional plans to hold it again next January)
• Ennis Congress (provisional plans to hold it next May)
• CUS Congress (took place for the first time last year and might be held again in September)
• Cork Congress (will be held from the 30th of September to the 2nd of October)