FIDE Women’s Candidates 2026: Who Has Qualified, and What Are the Remaining Pathways?

Baku, Azerbaijan – The path to challenging for the women’s world chess title in 2026 is becoming clearer, with the qualification criteria and several key players already securing their spots in the FIDE Women’s Candidates 2026 tournament. This eight-player event, scheduled for early 2026, will determine who faces China’s reigning Women’s World Champion Ju Wenjun later that year for the most coveted title in women’s chess.

Five Players Already Qualified, Three Spots Remaining

A total of eight coveted spots are available in the prestigious Candidates event. As of now, five formidable players have already punched their tickets through various qualification pathways:

• Zhu Jiner (China): Secured her place by winning the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix in May.
• Aleksandra Goryachkina (Russia): Qualified as the runner-up in the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix.
• Divya Deshmukh (India): Earned her spot by triumphing in the FIDE Women’s World Cup.
• Koneru Humpy (India): Qualified by reaching the final of the FIDE Women’s World Cup, ensuring strong Indian representation.
• Tan Zhongyi (China): Clinched her qualification by winning the third-place playoff at the World Cup against Lei Tingjie.

Remaining Pathways to the Candidates Tournament

With five spots filled, three crucial berths for the Candidates tournament are still up for grabs, providing opportunities for other top players to contend for the world title challenge:

• FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss 2025: Two of the remaining spots will be awarded to the first and second-placed players in this highly anticipated event. Should any already qualified player or the reigning World Champion finish in the top two of the Grand Swiss, the unallocated spot(s) will be passed down to the next non-qualifying player(s) in the standings.
• FIDE Women’s Events (2025-26): The final spot will be granted to the highest-placed player in “FIDE Women’s Events” who has not qualified through any of the aforementioned pathways. These events include the Rapid and Blitz Championships (2024 and 2025 editions), the Women’s Grand Prix Series (2024/2025 edition), the Women’s World Cup 2025, and the Women’s Grand Swiss 2025, ensuring a comprehensive selection process for the final challenger.

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