The 10 Most Famous Chess Games In History

The history of chess games is full of strange and interesting characters, tense political backdrops, and remarkable rises and falls. 

Here we have 10 of the most famous games in chess history. Some are noteworthy for the brilliance of the games, others for being a remarkable moment of historical drama, and still more for personal conflicts. 

Let’s take a look at these games.

19th Century Chess Games: Romantic Masterpieces

Perhaps the most dramatic chess games to date are found in the 19th Century. Growing interest in the game, intriguing characters, and the newness of chess theory led to a dazzling Romantic style of the players. It is in this period that we first turn to look for the most famous games in history.

While these games were often unrated casual play, they are remembered for the brilliance and audacity of the moves themselves. 

Adolf Anderssen Vs. Lionel Kieseritzky: The Immortal Game (1851)

In 19th-century chess, theory was limited, and players relied on their own brilliance to create games of exceptional beauty, such as this one. The Immortal Game was an informal chess match played at the height of the Romantic era, a period characterized by bold playing styles and wild sacrifices.

Anderssen was a champion of this style, and the game has immortalized him in chess history. He played the King’s Gambit, which is unheard of in professional chess today. Shortly after, he relinquished his castle rights. 

However, what made the game famous was the series of sacrifices, including two rooks and a queen, that led to a beautiful and unique checkmating pattern.

The unique and unrelenting attacking style, its quintessentially romantic style of play, and the brilliance of the sacrifices have made this one of the most famous chess games in history.

Adolf Anderssen Vs. Jean Dufresne: Evergreen Game (1852)

Anderssen is known for not one, but two of the greatest chess games of all time. The Evergreen, after the Immortal, is considered his best game. His opponent, Dufresne, was a popular chess author at the time, and the game was an unrated encounter. 

Anderssen played the Evans’ Gambit. By sacrificing a pawn, on b4, White gains a lead in development, puts Black’s bishop off centre, and opens the B file. This opening was a popular choice at the time, but what followed was by no means common.

The onslaught begins with a sacrifice of a knight on f6. After Black captures, White recaptures with a pawn (exf6) and opens the file for the rook, pinning a knight on e7. Instead of recapturing, Anderssen unleashes a sacrifice of a rook and then a queen to deliver the beautiful checkmate we see here.

Related: King's Pawn Opening: What to Know Before You Use It

Paul Morphy Vs. Duke Karl and Count Isouard: The Opera Game (1858)

Another great romantic player was Paul Morphy. His Opera Game, played in a Parisian opera house, is on every list of the greatest chess games of all time. It is a masterclass in attacking play, sacrifices, and development.

As early as move nine, Morphy sacrificed a bishop to develop quickly and check the king. With additional sacrifices and building pressure on the central king, he finishes with a beautiful queen sacrifice, forcing mate in one. 

20th Century Chess Games: On the Historic Stage

Chess has long been a part of history and has played a part in some of the most dramatic moments of the 20th century. From emblemizing the conflict of the Cold War to dramatizing the growing intelligence of machines, chess has been a key player on the historic stage.

In these games, we see the unusual settings of the 19th century replaced with the rigors of tournament play and classical time controls. 

Bobby Fischer Vs. Boris Spassky: 1972 World Championship, Game 21

The tensions of the Cold War encompassed competition in every field, including technology, territorial expansion, and military might. They were also played out over the chessboard. 

To summarize a long history, the Soviets had dominated the chess world for 24 years straight, winning the World Chess Championship. Bobby Fischer had dominated the candidates' tournament, and now the stage was set for a showdown between Soviet and American chess in Reykjavík, Iceland. Both Fischer and Spassky had enormous political pressure to win the match.

Before it even started, the event was controversial. Bobby Fischer had numerous demands before he agreed to play, and on several occasions, it looked as though it wouldn’t happen. This continued throughout the match. After losing the second game, he refused to play with cameras in the room. When his demands were refused, he failed to show up to the second game and was ready to abandon the match.

Ultimately, Fischer was convinced to continue, and his comeback began. From here on out, he dominated the match. In Game 21, he clinched it by playing a variation of the Sicilian he had never played before. The game was adjourned, and Spassky announced his resignation and forfeit of the match by telephone. 

The match and final game pitted two great champions against each other. The upsets, drama, and end to Soviet chess dominance make it one of the great matches of the 20th century. 

The Fischer Spassky Series Chess Pieces

Anatoly Karpov Vs. Garry Kasparov: 1985 World Championship, Game 16

Little more than a decade later, we have an epic showdown between Russian players in Moscow. Kasparov and Karpov had a longstanding rivalry, but this was only their second match. The first, the 1984 World Championship, famously ended unfinished after 48 games. 

With some back and forth throughout the match, it was in Game 16 that Kasparov created his masterpiece. By positioning a powerful, centralized knight in the middle of White’s territory, he managed to dictate the game. 

Gradually, he paralyzed Karpov’s position, making it difficult for him to make any improving moves. To finish the game, Kasparov centralized more pieces, putting pressure on an exposed king and forcing Karpov to give up his queen. The final flourish was in a winning position, rather than converting a material advantage, Kasparov set up a brutal checkmate, and Karpov resigned. 

Ultimately, Kasparov won the match and became the youngest world champion at age 22. 

Related: Zugzwang: How to Freeze Your Opponent's Position

Bobby Fischer Vs. Donald Byrne: The Game of the Century (1956)

Bobby Fischer played one of his best games when he was just 13 years old. At the Marshall Chess Club in 1956, Fischer made his first standout appearance in the chess history books.

Throughout the game, Fischer offered up sacrifices. Byrne could not accept because all of them led to much worse positions. From the outset, the young Fischer displayed incredible creativity and calculation.

The game progressed, and in another stroke of brilliance, Fischer sacrificed his queen in favor of an attack on the king. Here, Byrne had to finally accept because ignoring the sacrifice would have led to a smothered mate. Nevertheless, Fischer launched a vicious windmill attack, in which the knight can move anywhere with a discovered check on the king.

With this technique, Fischer collected enough material that he could cleanly convert the game. The mastery shown in this game was a sign of the incredible heights Fischer would reach in his career. 

Related: The Chess Savant: Do They Truly Exist

Judith Polgar Vs. Garry Kasparov: Dos Hermanas (1994)

At the age of 17, Judit Polgar was the youngest female grandmaster in the world. By then, Garry Kasparov was already a living legend of the game. The game was widely publicised. As a young woman in chess, Polgar was a rare and refreshing sight in high-level games. Many hoped she would manage to find a win or a draw. 

However, Kasparov had the game firmly in hand. The controversy arose when Kasparov violated the touch move. In the moment, Polgar did not challenge the violation, and Kasparov went on to win the game. 

Later, she explained that her youth and nervousness at a big tournament had caused her to waver. Kasparov later made condescending remarks about her being young and a woman, which further fueled media controversy. 

In 2002, she would finally beat Kasparov in the Russia versus the Rest of the World Match. 

Garry Kasparov Vs. Deep Blue: 1997 Rematch

In the last few decades, the most famous chess match was played between a man and a computer. 

Chess computers have been around since the 1950s, but it was only in the 1990s that they began to contend with top-level human players. Kasparov was known, as many chess players are, for his ego regarding the game. He contended that no computer could beat him. 

In 1996, this was put to the test during his first match with Deep Blue, a chess supercomputer made by IBM and managed by a team of computer scientists. In this first instance, Kasparov proved correct. He bested the computer in tournament conditions.

However, in 1997, they had a second meeting. It was a widely televised event and had broad appeal that transcended the chess world. After one win each and three draws, Deep Blue won the final game after sacrificing a knight to destroy Kasparov's defense. This was a move that he had calculated, but never expected a computer to make. Deep Blue won the match.

This chess game is one of the world's most famous because it dramatized the rising powers of artificial intelligence. The narrative of a contest between man and machine captured the popular imagination and, like many on our list, showed that a chess game can be more than just a game.

Further reading: Man v Machine - Kasparov v IBM's Deep Blue

21st Century Chess Games: Modern Classics 

Chess has undergone significant changes in the 21st century. From the correspondence games and daily chess matches, we have blitz and bullet time controls. With chess engine battles, huge numbers of online players, live server events, cheating scandals, and the strongest grandmasters of all time, the world of chess is more intense and complicated than ever before. 

Nevertheless, we have some of the greatest grandmaster games ever played. From the rise of Magnus Carlsen as a central figure to online Rapid matches known to every chess enthusiast, the 21st century has its own masterpieces.

Magnus Carlsen Vs. Viswanathan Anand: 2013 World Championship, Game 5 

Today, Magnus Carlsen is the most famous figure in chess. For many, he is the best chess player of all time. 

However, it wasn’t until 2013 that he became a World Champion. After beating Viswanathan Anand, Carlsen ushered in a new era in chess. 

The chess match started with both players opting for familiar openings and playing solidly. In round five, Carlsen began to show his dominance. 

Carlsen, playing with the white pieces, started with c4. The opening transposed into a Queen’s Gambit Declined, and Carlsen played the somewhat unexpected Marshal Gambit. With a methodical endgame, Carlsen managed to isolate Anand’s pawns and convert the game. Carlsen’s ability to quickly transition into a favorable endgame would soon become legendary.

Overall, this was a turning point in the match. The game is often pinpointed as the key moment, after which Magnus Carlsen would become the new World Champion and introduce a new generation of players.

Wei Yi Vs. Lazaro Bruzon Batista: Game of the 21st Century (2015)

To end where we started, 16-year-old Wei Yi’s “Immortal Game” was in many ways reminiscent of early classics. With dazzling sacrifices and a 13-move king hunt, the game’s attacking style and end by checkmate was a beautiful reminder of the game’s early brilliance. 

While many famous chess games are battles involving bitter personal rivalries or looming historical implications, some of the best-known games are remembered simply for the brilliance of the play. The young Wei Yi managed to create an incredible combination that chess players and enthusiasts will remember for a long time.