The 2026 European Youth Rapid & Blitz Chess Championship starts this Monday in Rzeszow, Poland! The event will take place from July 6 – July 10 at the Podpromie Playing Hall and will be played in six age categories: U8, U10, U12, U14, U16 and U18, open and girls sections separately.
The event gathers nearly 950 children coming from 33 European federations! The Championship will crown 24 European Champions, for different age sections and for Rapid and Blitz competitions.
List of registered players can be found here.
European Youth Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship 2026 features two championships:
European Youth Rapid Chess Championship 2026
- European Youth Rapid Chess Championship 2026 will take place on 7-8 July, 2026.
- The Championship shall be played over 9 rounds, according to the Swiss system (one game per round).
- Rate of play: 15 minutes + 10 seconds increment per move, starting from move one.
- Categories (12 in total): Open and Girls Under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18.
- Prizes: The top three (3) players in each category shall receive trophies, medals, and prizes in kind.
- The Winners of each category receive the official title of European Youth Rapid Chess Champion 2026 of the respective category.
European Youth Blitz Chess Championship 2026
- European Youth Blitz Chess Championship 2026 will take place on July 9th, 2026
- The Championship shall be played over 9 rounds, according to the Swiss system (two games per round).
- Rate of play: 3 minutes + 2 seconds increment per move, starting from move one.
- Categories (12 in total): Open and Girls Under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18.
- Prizes: The top three (3) players in each category shall receive trophies, medals, and prizes in kind.
- The Winners of each category receive the official title of European Youth Blitz Chess Champion 2026 of the respective category.
The technical meeting of the event is scheduled for Monday, July 6, at 21:00 CEST, while the tournament officially kicks off on Tuesday, July 7, with the start of the European Youth Rapid Chess Championship 2026.
Official tournament schedule and detailed information about the event can be found on the official website.
