The long-simmering feud between Carlsen and Niemann has flared up again in the chess world during the FIDE World Team Rapid Championship. In the deciding round, the two grandmasters were supposed to face each other, but Carlsen decided to sit out the round, which put Ian Nepomniachtchi in trouble.

Magnus Carlsen caused a storm of controversy in 2022 after his loss to Niemann in the Sinquefield Cup, a prestigious invitational event. He withdrew from the event the very next day, later claiming that his opponent "has cheated more – and recently – than he has publicly admitted", referring to a handful of online games the young American has admitted to, adding that "his over-the-board progression has been unusual, and during our match in the Sinquefield Cup I had the impression that he was not tense or even fully focused on the game in crucial positions, while he outplayed me as black in a way that I think only a handful of players can do."

Since then, there have been threats and lawsuits, abandoned matches and bad blood, but the players have occasionally had Titled Tuesday encounters with little controversy, and apart from the chess.com report detailing earlier online abuses, no further evidence of foul play has emerged. Now, Carlsen has opted not to play in the final round of the team match, where he was due to face Niemann, leaving Ian Nepomniachtchi to play out the game instead. The Russian super-grandmaster eventually drew with Niemann, and Carlsen's team went on to win the round by a score of 3.5-2.5.

While there is no confirmation as to why Magnus sat out the match (given that this is a team event with more players than boards playing, it is perfectly normal for players to sit out certain games), the world number one's decision to withhold his considerable skill for the final round, with tournament victory at stake, was enough to inflame emotions in the chess community.