Archive · 5 Sep 2026
Samay Raina’s Joke Becomes a Global Chess League
In 2020, comedian Samay Raina joked that Anand Mahindra should create a worldwide chess league.
Mahindra noticed that many people were watching Raina and Sagar Shah discuss chess online.
He decided the idea might really work.
FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich and chess champion Viswanathan Anand then helped develop it.
The league now has six teams and plays in different cities.
It offers $1 million in prizes every year.
Mahindra still loses games to computer opponents and makes mistakes.
He believes those human mistakes make chess more interesting than watching perfect machines play.
Comedian Samay Raina challenged Anand Mahindra in 2020 to create a global chess league.
Mahindra took the suggestion seriously after seeing large audiences for Raina and Sagar Shah’s chess streams.
FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich and five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand later joined the effort.
The Tech Mahindra-FIDE league now has six franchises, a $1-million annual prize purse, and a projected five-year business value above $40 million.
Mahindra says his own chess blunders highlight the human fallibility that keeps audiences interested in the game.
- Who
- Comedian Samay Raina, Anand Mahindra, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, Viswanathan Anand and other chess figures.
- What
- A 2020 joke about creating a global chess league became the Tech Mahindra-FIDE Global Chess League.
- When
- The challenge was made in 2020; the account was published on September 5, 2026.
- Where
- The league has held seasons in Dubai, London, Mumbai and Bengaluru; the remarks were made in Bengaluru.
- Why
- Mahindra saw growing audiences for online chess streams and pursued the idea with FIDE and chess figures.
- Original challenge
- Samay Raina challenged Anand Mahindra during an online interaction in 2020.
- League partnership
- The Global Chess League became a joint venture between Tech Mahindra and FIDE.
- Franchises
- The league has six franchises.
- Annual prize purse
- The league offers $1 million annually in prizes.
- Projected business value
- Its projected five-year business value exceeds $40 million.
- League locations
- Seasons have travelled from Dubai to London, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
- Mahindra’s chess ability
- Mahindra said he regularly battles chess.com bots and is mocked for making blunders.