World champion Magnus Carlsen has undisputedly been the face of a new generation of chess players in the three years he has held the title. At just 13.5 years old, he was the third youngest player ever to achieve the elite rank of grandmaster. But this year, his competition may out-prodigy the seemingly unstoppable Norwegian.

His challenger for the coveted title, not to mention the first prize pool of $750,000, is renowned for his creative defence and strong preparation. Sergey Karjakin, the Russian former-prodigy, is the youngest chess player ever to become a grandmaster, doing so at only 12 years old.

There’s no doubt we’re about to witness a face-off of two of the youngest and brightest chess players competing in chess today. This year the two young players with a combined age of only 51 years old are the youngest contenders to compete for the title.

This is also the first time we are seeing two players of the so-called “computer generation” face off, due to the failure of former world champion 46-year-old Indian player Viswanathan Anand to qualify for what would have been his sixth time competing for the title.

According to Worldchess.com, the competitors this year “represent a generational shift in chess”, with both players growing up with computers that have long since outstripped human capacity for the game.

At this point it looks like the age of the older generation is over, with a host of younger players, including  Chinese prodigy 17 year old Wei Yi and 21 year old Anish Giri of the Netherlands currently preparing to take the fight to the top.

Chess fans around the world will have the opportunity to buy ringside seats to the New York event, with organizer Agon providing a 360 degree viewing option thanks to virtual reality technology. It’s just another one of many ways chess is changing, with the pay-per-view option bringing chess into a more professional light.

The website is super interactive and provides some great stats about not only the current top two players, but a full list with the top 100 players.

For more details head to: https://worldchess.com/nyc2016/

Keep an eye on the Chesslife blog for further updates. The championship begins November 11.