Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Chess Podium and tournament management.
Chess Podium is a WordPress plugin that lets you create and manage chess tournaments directly from your website. Add players, generate pairings, enter results, and publish standings—all without spreadsheets.
Yes. Chess Podium runs as a WordPress plugin. You need a WordPress site (self-hosted or WordPress.com Business plan) with PHP 7.4 or higher.
Yes. The free version lets you run full tournaments with up to 10 players per event. Pro (€79/year) removes the player limit, adds online registration with Stripe and PayPal to monetize tournaments, plus PGN games, photo galleries, and advanced exports.
Download the plugin from the Download page, then in WordPress go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin. Choose the ZIP file, install, and activate. After activation, go to Settings → Permalinks and save changes.
Free: up to 10 players per tournament. Pro: unlimited players.
Yes. You can edit name, rating, and nationality at any time. You can delete a player only if they have not yet been paired in any round.
Use "Undo current round" to cancel the last generated round. You can then correct results and regenerate. No data is lost.
Players with the same score are paired against each other. Chess Podium generates pairings automatically. The engine is practical for club events; FIDE-advanced mode is on the roadmap.
Round Robin means everyone plays everyone. Choose this when creating the tournament if you have a small group (typically under 12 players) and want all possible games.
Buchholz, FIDE Buchholz Cut 1, Sonneborn-Berger, ARO, rating, and direct encounter. You can set the order when creating the tournament.
Share the live tournament URL (e.g. yoursite.com/torneo/). Players can view current standings, round pairings, and results on any device. No login required.
Yes. Use the bulk CSV import. Format: name;rating or name;rating;fide_id;country. The first row can be a header.
Yes. Enter a FIDE ID and Chess Podium fetches name, rating, and nationality from the official FIDE database.
Yes. Use the archive widget or shortcode to display your club's tournament history on any page.
Yes. If the tournament is already published elsewhere, you can add it as an "external tournament" with a link. It will appear in the same layout as Chess Podium tournaments.
Grand Prix is a series of tournaments linked together. Players earn points based on their position (1st, 2nd, etc.) and participation. You get an aggregated standings and a social ELO computed from all games across GP tournaments. Perfect for club leagues and annual competitions.
Go to Chess Podium → Grand Prix to create a new Grand Prix. Configure points per position and participation. Then, in each tournament's settings, go to the Grand Prix section and check the box to link it to one or more Grand Prix. The standings update automatically.
Yes, with Pro. Online registration lets you set an entry fee per tournament. Players register and pay via Stripe or PayPal; they are added to the tournament automatically and receive an email confirmation. Ideal for chess clubs that want to monetize events and cover costs.
Pro is €79/year. After purchase you receive a license key by email. Enter it in Chess Podium → License. The license is locked to your domain on first activation. One license per domain.
No. Each license is valid for one domain only. On first activation, the license locks to that site. If you migrate your site, contact us to reset the domain.
Yes. Chess Podium Desktop for Windows and macOS is planned for the future.
Yes. The admin panel and public tournament pages are responsive. Players can follow pairings and standings on their phone.
Yes. Use "Generate round and print pairings" to create a round and open a printable sheet ready to post on the wall.
With Pro, download Chess Podium Connect (free Windows app) from the Download page. Connect your DGT boards to a PC running DGT LiveChess, configure PGN export, then run CP Connect: enter your site URL, select the PGN file or live URL, choose Start. Boards update automatically on your tournament page every few seconds.
Chess Podium Pro, DGT board(s) connected to a PC with DGT LiveChess (or compatible software that exports PGN), and Chess Podium Connect (free Windows app). CP Connect reads the PGN file or live URL and sends moves to your site. No configuration files needed—setup in one step.
Yes. Same PC: LiveChess exports to a PGN file, CP Connect reads that file and sends updates to your site. Different PC: if LiveChess exposes a live URL (e.g. from another computer in the venue), CP Connect can fetch from that URL instead. Both modes are supported.