Go News

Claims that go is “about to be included” in the Olympic Games appear online from time to time. There is no confirmation in open sources: the IOC has made no decision to include go, and no formal Olympic application has been found. We publish only verifiable facts.

What has really been done: the IGF adopted anti-doping protocols and works with the International Testing Agency (ITA), is a member of GAISF and IMSA, and unites 77 national federations. These are the basic conditions without which IOC recognition is impossible.

1. 1982The International Go Federation (IGF) is founded, headquartered in Tokyo, with 29 founding countries.
2. 2006IGF joins GAISF, the General Association of International Sports Federations.
3. IMSAIGF is a founding federation of the International Mind Sports Association (chess, bridge, draughts, go, xiangqi).
4. 2010Go enters the Asian Games programme as a medal event.
5. 2022Go returns to the Asian Games in Hangzhou (the event was held in 2023).
6. 2026Go is not included in the programme of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

Go already has its own “Olympic” format: the Ing Cup is held every four years, the winner's prize is 400,000 US dollars, and the tournament is informally called the “Go Olympics”. The 10th edition in 2024 was won by Japan's Ryo Ichiriki.

There is no single precise statistic by country: federations define “player” differently. What is reliably known is that most players live in China, Korea and Japan, where professional associations and the largest prize tournaments operate. Recent estimates for Japan give about 1.2 million players with a steady decline in popularity, and Nihon Ki-in is undergoing structural reform. In Europe and the Americas the count is in the thousands of tournament-active players.

Philosophy: the game as a language of partnership

In go there is no king to capture: the winner is the one who builds more space without destroying the opponent. Handicaps level the strength at the table, and the rank system honestly shows where you stand. So across the board a manager and an employee, an investor and a startup founder meet on equal terms and learn to read each other's intentions. This environment of trust makes go a natural venue for business networking.

• Business leaders at the head of the IGF

  IGF presidents have included Hiroshi Okabe, head of Denso Corporation; Zhang Zhenming, president of CITIC Group (twice); Hong Seok-hyun, chairman of the Korea Baduk Association and head of Joongang Media Network; and Koichiro Matsuura, former Director-General of UNESCO.

• Nihon Ki-in corporate members

  The Japanese Go Association runs a system of supporting companies, with funds going to children's education, programmes for seniors and support for university clubs.

• Strategy metaphors

  Hedge fund manager Mark Spitznagel built his book “The Dao of Capital” around go, Japan Airlines manager Miura Yusuke wrote “GO: An Asian Paradigm for Business Strategy”, and the name Atari comes from a go term.

Professional tournaments

Amateur championships and congresses 2026

Prizes at amateur championships are usually symbolic; the main reward is the title and international rating reputation. Check organisers' websites for exact dates and registration terms, as schedules may change.