ICCF International Correspondence Chess Federation
The international governing body of correspondence chess — administered separately from FIDE since 1951, runs the World Correspondence Chess Championship and the over-the-board ICCF rating system.
The ICCF was founded in 1951 as the successor body to the older International Correspondence Chess Association (founded 1928). It is administered separately from FIDE but recognised as the international authority on correspondence chess, with 60 member federations as of 2026. ICCF runs the World Correspondence Chess Championship (which proceeds by qualifying tournaments and finals over a multi-year cycle, with each round potentially taking 18 months) and a parallel ICCF rating system.
The Modern Era
Correspondence chess has been transformed by engines — every serious correspondence game today involves both players consulting top engines in addition to their own analysis, making the format a test of analytical depth and judgement rather than calculation speed. The current World Correspondence Chess Champion is Jon Edwards (USA), who became the first American to win the title in 2022. Draw rates at the top of the correspondence rating list exceed 80%.