A waiting list for a chess tournament: how to run it

Alexey Mudry · updated October 26, 2026

Twenty boards, forty places, and sixty people want to sign up. Close sign-up at forty and on the day you will be looking at five empty tables: some will not come. Sign everyone up and you risk them all coming. A waiting list solves this: places are not wasted, and waiting players know they will be called. Below - four approaches to limited places, how to run the list and how the cap on places works in the Vibe Chess app.

Four approaches to limited places

Approach	How it works	Pro	Con
Hard cap	as many places as boards allow; signed up last - did not get in	simple and fair	some places stay empty because of no-shows
Cap plus waiting list	after the cap people go on a list; when a place frees up, the next one is called	no places are wasted	you have to run the list and message people
Overbooking	more sign-ups than boards, counting on no-shows	the room is full	if everyone comes, someone has no place
Walk-ins on the day	people without a sign-up play if places are left	nothing to manage	people travel without knowing if they will play

For most amateur tournaments the second approach is best: a cap by the number of boards and a waiting list with confirmation the evening before. Overbooking only works if you know your audience well and keep spare boards.

How many places to open

Places - as many as the number of boards times two. With 20 boards, 40 players. In the Swiss system an odd number is no problem: one player per round gets a bye. Keep two or three more places for the organiser: for guests, the arbiter, a player coming from far away.

How to work out the floor space and tables for the number of players you need - a chess tournament venue.

How to run the list: five steps

1Count the places. The number of boards and tables times two. Plus a few spare for the organiser's guests.
2Open sign-up with a cap. When places run out, sign-up closes, and everyone else goes on the waiting list in order.
3Ask for confirmation. The evening before - to everyone signed up: "Please confirm by 8 pm, or we will give your place away".
4Hand over places. Tell those who did not confirm that their place has gone; tell the first on the waiting list that there is a place.
5Let people in on the day. If tables are left on the day, let in waiting players who came to the hall.

Announce the list's rules in the announcement: "40 places, then a waiting list; the evening before we will ask you to confirm". Then a place given away does not cause offence, and waiting players are ready to come when messaged.

The day of the tournament: waiting players in the hall

Some people on the waiting list will come uninvited - "just in case there is a place". They are the best insurance against no-shows. The procedure is simple: before the start, mark which of the signed-up players came, and give the free places to waiting players in the hall - in waiting-list order.

A latecomer who arrives after the start may join a Swiss tournament from the next round - if the regulations allow it. More about no-shows - how to reduce no-shows at a tournament.

The Coffee Bean hall is full: players watching games and waiting for the next round — A Vibe Chess tournament in Moscow City: every place taken.

A tournament player at Coffee Bean thinking over a move, head resting on his hand — A Vibe Chess tournament in Moscow City: every place taken.

The cap on places in the Vibe Chess app

What the app does if a tournament has a set number of places:

• places run out - sign-up closes by itself;
• someone leaves the list or the organiser adds places - sign-up opens again, and the place goes to whoever signs up first;
• the organiser closed sign-up by hand - it does not reopen by itself, even if a place frees up;
• attendance before the start - only those present are paired;
• latecomers - may join a Swiss tournament as it goes, unless "no entry after the start" is switched on.

An arena card before the start: all 11 players checked in, 4 tables, a warning that some pairs will wait, a start button — Attendance checked, tables counted - ready to start.

The Player list: 17 players with ratings and toggles, a Split into groups button — The list: who signed up, plus the organiser's guest.

The app does not yet have a queue that notifies waiting players: a freed place goes to the first person who opens sign-up. Keep the waiting list in order in the tournament chat. Need a queue right in the app - write to the developers, the link is at the bottom of the page.

A cap on places that looks after itself

In the Vibe Chess app sign-up closes when places run out and opens when a place frees up. Create a tournament for free.

Open the Vibe Chess app

Frequently asked questions about a waiting list

What is a tournament waiting list?

A queue of people who wanted to sign up after places ran out. If someone signed up drops out or does not confirm, the first person in the queue gets the place.

How many places should I open?

As many as the number of boards times two, plus two or three spare places kept by the organiser.

Can I sign up more players than there are places?

You can, if you know well how many usually do not come and keep spare boards. Otherwise a cap with a waiting list is more reliable.

When should a place go to the next person in the queue?

If the person signed up drops out themselves or has not confirmed by the time set the evening before.

Does the Vibe Chess app have a waiting list?

There is no queue with notifications yet. There is a cap on places: sign-up closes when places run out and opens again when someone leaves the list.

The app instead of arbiter software

Pairings are computed by bbpPairings, an open-source engine implementing the Dutch system by FIDE rules: score groups, floats on an odd field, colour alternation. Free to use.

Swiss system

proper rounds with correct pairings, not random matchups

Round robin

a full circle, with the round count derived from the field

Free meetup

a light format with no tournament machinery

How the tournament runs

1The event is created in the app in a minute
2Players register themselves through the link
3The engine pairs every round, not the organizer
4The finished tournament exports as a TRF file that arbiter software accepts

Open the app

More than a bot: the app, FIDE rules and a TRF report

The app. Besides the bot there is an app - inside Telegram and simply at playvibechess.com/app: what is on in your city, the player list, a live table, the current round, your profile and game history - everything that is awkward to read as chat messages.
Pairings by FIDE rules. Pairings are computed by bbpPairings, an open-source engine implementing the Dutch system: score groups, floats on an odd field, colour alternation, no rematches, and no player gets a bye twice.
A TRF report. A finished tournament exports as a single file in the FIDE data exchange format - the one arbiter software and federations accept. Your profile stores the FIDE ID, national federation code, title, sex and date of birth for it.
Free. All of the above, with no subscriptions, paid plans or limits on the number of tournaments and players.

Full overview

Missing a feature? Message the developers

The bot is constantly improved based on real tournaments. If you need a feature that isn't there yet, message the developers right inside the bot with the /support command. Many features appeared exactly because organizers asked for them, and useful ideas get added quickly.

What to read next

More about players: how to reduce no-shows, tournament registration, tournament announcement templates and a chess tournament venue.

Alexey Mudry · hosted 37 events for Vibe Chess · 157 reviews · rating 5.0

At the board since childhood: hazy about his rating, precise about every rook he has blundered. Counts an evening as a good one if the opponent stayed to talk afterwards instead of rushing off to check with an engine. Message →