Team Vitality signs a chess grandmaster

There has been a real change of favour in how gamers and esports fans look at one of the oldest board games, chess, as of late. We've seen competitive chess become very popular, so much so that various esports organisations have signed chess grandmasters to represent them on the global stage.

The latest to get in on this is Team Vitality, who has now signed Maxime "MVL" Vachier-Lagrave as its new professional chess star. MVL is regarded as one of the world's best, with five victories at the Biel Grandmaster Tournament, two wins at the Sinquefield Cup, and even a victory at the World Blitz Championship back in 2021. He was also regarded as a grandmaster at the young age of 14, making him one of the youngest grandmasters ever.

Speaking about joining Team Vitality, MVL stated: "Competing for Team Vitality this year is an exciting challenge, and the two qualifying tournaments will be key milestones in my 2025 season for qualifying in the EWC. Seeing chess take its place alongside some of the biggest games in esports is incredible—it's a fantastic opportunity to grow the game and inspire the next generation of players."

MVL will be hoping to represent Team Vitality at the Esports World Cup too in the summer.