AThe Daily News Lebanon, Pennsylvania Monday, April 17, 1972 - Page 2
World Chess Matches Still Without Home
Amsterdam (UPI) — The first games of the world chess championship between Bobby Fischer of the United States and Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union still were without a home today after officials in Amsterdam said they did not want to host the match.
Max Euwe, president of the International Chess Federation. had suggested that the first games be played in Amsterdam after the original Belgrade sponsors said they no longer were willing to organize the match.
But a Dutch Chess Federation spokesman said Sunday “since the first leg of 12 games is scheduled to start June 22, it looks impossible to find in good time the sponsors to provide the about $160,000 needed. Even if the sponsors could be found, it could not be guaranteed that Fischer and Spassky would agree to play in Amsterdam.”
The Belgrade sponsors backed out of the game arrangements after the American Chess Federation failed to put up a $35,000 guarantee that Fischer would play in Belgrade.
A similar guarantee for Spassky was provided by the Russians, the International Chess Federation said April 13 when the decision of the Belgrade sponsors was announced.
Agreement on the procedure for the 24-match series had been reached March 20 during a meeting in Amsterdam with representatives of the two players and the Soviet, American, Yugoslav and Icelandic federations.
The first 12 games would be played in Belgrade and the remaining 12 in Reykjavik. Belgrade and Reykjavik offered a total prize money of $138,000 of which 62.50 per cent would go to the winner and 37.5 per cent to the loser.
Fischer later told organizers he wanted a percentage of television and movie rights proceeds.
When he finally accepted, the Belgrade sponsors, who had already stopped preparations, demanded the $35,000 guarantee.
After Belgrade backed out, Euwe, in Australia on a chess promoting trip, suggested Holland might be willing to take over the first 12 games.
