Six of the best chess players in the world will be participating in the championship: Viswanathan Anand, the current world champion, Magnus Carlsen, the number-one ranked player in the world on the official FIDE rating list, together with four other grand masters: Levon Aronian, Hikaru Nakamura, Vasili Ivanchuk and the Spanish player Francisco Vallejo.
Six of the best chess players in the world – Viswanathan Anand (India), the current world champion, Magnus Carlsen (Norway), the number-one ranked player in the world on the official FIDE rating list, Levon Aronian (Armenia), currently ranked 3rd in the world and the winner of the 2009 edition, plus three other top players, Hikaru Nakamura (USA), currently ranked 6th in the world, Vasili Ivanchuk (Ukraine), ranked 7th, and the Spanish player Paco Vallejo (ex-Under 18 World Champion and occupying 10th place on the FIDE rating since 1 July – will be participating in the 4th Grand Slam Chess Masters Final.
The 4th Grand Slam Masters Final will consist of two rounds, the first in São Paulo (from 25 September-1 October) and the second in Bilbao (from 5-11 October).
As in previous years, the IV edition of the championship will be played using a two-round league system, the first round being played in São Paulo and the second in the giant glass urn located in AlhondigaBilbao, the championship's venue in the Basque capital.
The organizers have confirmed that the Bilbao Masters Final will include all the aspects that contributed to the excellent results obtained in 2008, 2009 and 2010 and the event's very favourable reception both locally and internationally. There will be a varied parallel programme of activities, an analysis unit and commentaries for the general public, giant screens, live broadcasting via the Internet, and the attendance of media representatives from all over the world. And, of course, the world of elite chess will be fully accessible to the general public, since all visitors will be able to follow live the gambits and moves of the champions participating in the final.
The organizers of the 4th edition of the Bilbao Masters Final will continue to favour novel rules that try to ensure well-contested and exciting games. Specifically, the Sofia rule – which establishes that only the referee has the right to determine if a game has ended in a draw, thus avoiding pacts between players – will again apply. In addition, a points system similar to that of football leagues, with three points for the winner, one for a draw, and zero for the loser, used for the first time in an elite tournament in the Bilbao Masters Final 2008 and now known as the Bilbao rule, will continue to be used.
The 4th edition of the Grand Slam Masters Final continues with its global expansion, starting last year with the Shanghai-Bilbao joint championship. On this occasion, the Basque tournament will be crossing the Atlantic to South America, specifically to the Brazilian city of São Paulo, an industrial power like Shanghai and the 10th most populated city in the world.
This year's edition of the tournament is marked by an agreement signed by the mayors of Bilbao and São Paulo with the aim of carrying out joint projects in the fields of sports, culture, leisure and education, as well as promoting economic and business relations such as the development of future projects and programmes, according to the interests and needs of the two cities.
Featuring among the sponsors of this important event – converting Bilbao into one of the world's chess capitals – are Bilbao City Council, the regional government of Vizcaya, the Basque regional government, and the companies Euskaltel and BBK. Collaborators include AlhondigaBilbao, Angulas Aguinaga, Bilbao Chamber of Commerce, CAF, Carwagen, Exbasa, the Spanish Chess Federation, the Basque Chess Federation, the Vizcaya Chess Federation, Gescrap, GMSM, IDOM, Inmogroup, Construcciones Olavarri, Juanjo Novella, Mercado de La Ribera, Marques de Riscal, Hotel Melia, Metro Bilbao, MSC Cruceros, S&F, Sacyr Febide, Tecuni, Viconsa and Restaurante Yandiola.
