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- Magnus Carlsen is the betting favourite to win this weekend's Speed Chess Championship
- Carlsen will take on Hans Niemann in match with bad blood
- Paris will host the Semi Finals and then the Grand Final
Magnus Carlsen is the betting favourite to win this weekend's Speed Chess Championship
The 2024 Speed Chess Championship takes place in Paris this weekend with four men heading into finals weekend and betting sites are now offering odds on who will be crowned the winner.
World Number 1 Magnus Carlsen is the betting favourite to win the Speed Chess Championship with bookies putting him at odds-on to win the event.
Carlsen ran out 12-9 winner against Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi back in August to seal his semi-final spot in Paris and he sits above the other three competitors as the favourite.
Bwin's latest betting odds have Carlsen at 3/5 to win the event which gives an implied probability of 62.5% that he is crowned champion and there are betting sign up offers to look at ahead of the event.
| Speed Chess Championship 2024 Winner | Odds | Probability |
|---|---|---|
| Magnus Carlsen | 3/5 | 62.5% |
| Hikaru Nakamura | 3/1 | 25.0% |
| Alireza Firouzja | 6/1 | 14.3% |
| Hans Niemann | 8/1 | 11.1% |
What the expert says...
Carlsen will take on Hans Niemann in match with bad blood
Carlsen is set to face Hans Niemann in Paris this weekend in what is their first face-to-face meeting since Carlsen accused Niemann of cheating back in 2022.
The pair played each other in the Sinquefield Cup back in September 2022 with Carlsen saying that Niemann's behavior during their match led him to believe that he was cheating.
Carlsen withdrew from that tournament and then just 2 weeks later they were scheduled to play each other again with Carlsen making one move before resigning.
Controversy followed and to say there is bad blood there between them is an understatement with Paris seeing the pair face off against each other face-to-face for the first time since.
All eyes will be on this one and it's Carlsen who is the 2/9 favourite to win, with Niemann given a 25% chance of winning the match according to his odds.
Paris will host the Semi Finals and then the Grand Final
Paris will host the live final of the 2024 Speed Chess Championship this weekend with a total prize pool of $175,000 being competed for.
The French capital's new esports arena will host the event which will take place from September 6 to 8 and Nakamura and Carlsen will be looking to reach the final once again.
Nakamura has been crowned winner of the event on a record six occasions but lost in 2023 to Carlsen who heads into this one as the favourite.
