Bengaluru, March 21 -- Erling Haaland is backing the new Total Chess World Championship, joining as a key investor in Norway Chess, which will run the tournament jointly with the world chess body, FIDE. The Manchester City forward, together with Norwegian business leader Morten Borge, has set up the company Chess Mates, which will be a significant owner of Norway Chess - the only classical tournament that fellow Norwegian and world No.1 Magnus Carlsen consistently participates in. Carlsen is expected to feature in the Total Chess World Championship, which will bring together all three formats of the game into a single tournament. "Chess is an incredible game," Haaland said, "It sharpens your mind, and there are clear similarities to football. You have to think quickly, trust your instincts, and think several moves ahead. Strategy and planning are everything. "I'm investing in Norway Chess because I believe the new Total Chess World Championship Tour can turn chess into an even bigger sport for spectators around the world. The team behind Norway Chess has already done an impressive job growing the event, and joining the project was too exciting to pass up." The Total Chess World Championship Tour will consist of four tournaments each year, hosted by four different cities, and will crown a combined world champion across three disciplines - fast classic, rapid, and blitz chess. This new World Championship has been approved by Fide for a minimum of 16 years. A pilot tournament is planned for around October, followed by a full Championship season in 2027. Each season will consist of four events, and a minimum annual prize pool of $2.7 million. "The fact that Erling is joining us as an investor says a great deal about the commercial potential of this tour. He has already contributed with several great ideas," said Kjell Madland, CEO of Norway Chess and Total Chess. "With Erling on board, we are now entering the final phase of finding host cities for the first tour."...