Watch: Sensational Magnus Carlsen stuns with blindfold chess skills against local champ

World chess champion Magnus Carlsen wowed the crowd at the NEXT Summit when he defeated Malta’s chess champion Colin Pace despite playing blindfolded in an exhibition match at the Mediterranean Conference Centre.

Five-time world champion Carlsen, who is also a BETBY ambassador, was the special guest during the conference, where he hosted a keynote session during which he shared his insights on strategy, competition, and the parallels between chess and iGaming.

The highlight of Carlsen’s appearance at the NEXT Summit was his exhibition match against local champion Colin Pace, with both players having ten minutes to call their shots.

Pace got the opportunity to face Carlsen in this unique match as he was the winner of the iGaming World Chess Championship held this week.

The match saw Carlsen blindfolded and called each shot he wanted to take.

Despite the clear handicap, the Norwegian Grandmaster still managed to come out on top as Pace resigned with just 20 seconds left on his clock.  

Carlsen’s presence in Malta inevitably attracted a lot of enthusiasm among the Maltese chess community, with several young players greeting the five-time world champion before he headed into the Mediterranean Conference Centre.

Carlsen stopped to sign autographs and take photos with his admirers.

During his stay at the Conference, Carlsen met with top officials of the Malta Chess Federation.