World Chess Championship 1886 — first chess championship, held in the United States
The 1886 match established the first official World Chess Championship title, crowning Wilhelm Steinitz as the inaugural world champion.
Key Facts
- Match dates
- 11 January – 29 March 1886
- Final score
- Steinitz 10 wins, Zukertort 5 wins, 5 draws
- Total games played
- 20 games
- Cities hosting the match
- New York City, St. Louis, New Orleans
- Win threshold
- 10 wins required
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
By the 1880s, Wilhelm Steinitz and Johannes Zukertort had emerged as the foremost chess players in the world. Growing recognition of the need for a formal contest to determine a world champion led to the arrangement of an official match between the two rivals, to be held across multiple cities in the United States.
The match was played from 11 January to 29 March 1886 across New York City, St. Louis, and New Orleans. The first player to reach ten wins would be declared champion. Steinitz defeated Zukertort by a score of 10 wins to 5, with five draws, clinching the title in the twentieth game of the contest.
Wilhelm Steinitz became the first officially recognized World Chess Champion, establishing a precedent for formal championship matches. The 1886 contest created the framework for subsequent world championship competitions and solidified the concept of a reigning world chess champion that persists to the present day.
Result
at New York City, St. Louis, and New Orleans, USA