US government accused of not supporting chess by Fabiano Caruana as he praises India's growth: 'Results are clear'

World No. 3 Fabiano Caruana has criticised the United States national government for failing to support chess, while praising the efforts of administrators who have led to a chess boom in India and Uzbekistan. The United States, the land of chess great Bobby Fischer, has produced many top players over the years, including Paul Morphy, Hikaru Nakamura, Caruana, and more.

However, the USA has been losing its stronghold recently, with the biggest young champions emerging from India and Uzbekistan. India's D Gukesh became the youngest world champion in 2024 at 18, while Uzbek Grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov recently won the Fide Candidates 2026 at 20.

Sindarov will face Gukesh later this year for the world chess title.

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Caruana blames US government for poor chess progress

Caruana, who was the last American to play in a World Chess Championship match in 2018, has blamed the lack of investment from the USA government for the slowing down of the sport's progress in the country.

“The government and companies should invest in chess, it’s very beneficial," Caruana told Romanian newspaper Ziarul Financiar.

"But in the US, the situation is a little different… The government is not involved in chess development, so we rely on companies and private sponsors, such as the Saint Louis Chess Club. In European countries, the situation is better — governments are more involved."

Caruana added that government support has been a major factor behind India and Uzbekistan's recent rise as chess powerhouses.

"If you look at countries that have made the most progress over the past two decades, such as Uzbekistan and India, these are precisely the places where governments have invested a lot of effort and resources in chess. And the results are clear.

"Uzbekistan, although not a large country, is capable of producing some of the best players in the world.”

Interestingly, Uzbekistan won the Chess Olympiad Open title in 2022, and India won the competition in 2024. The USA's last win had come in 2016.