Anichess Masters League Sets Four-Seat Rotation, Opens Seasonal Playoffs

@AnichessGame detailed the competitive structure of its first Masters League on September 29, 2026, confirming that four of the league's eight seats will change hands at the end of every season and that qualification runs through an open Seasonal Playoffs bracket.

The league, first announced the prior week, puts eight players into a round robin of best-of-five matches for a 100,000 $CHECK prize pool. The opening eight competitors are already locked in, drawn from the Road to Magnus Cup and Anichess's last two playoffs.

Under the format outlined in the post, the top four finishers retain their seats into the following season, while four new players earn their way in every season. The first four seats turn over when the current season ends, and the route to them runs through the Seasonal Playoffs, which @AnichessGame says are open to anyone who plays the game.

Context

Anichess is a Web3 chess game developed by Animoca Brands and Chess.com and endorsed by Magnus Carlsen, layering spell-casting mechanics onto standard chess rules. The title is Base-native, with gas, contracts and its CHECK strategy token tied to the network; CHECK is being rolled into Anichess in stages.

The Masters League sits inside Season 10, "Ascension," which carries a broader 300,000 CHECK prize pool. Details of the format were previously outlined on September 23.

With the inaugural eight already determined, attention now turns to the Seasonal Playoffs, which will decide the first class of challengers to claim seats in the next Masters League season.