Jan Henric Buettner is aiming to fundamentally change the way FIDE generates and distributes revenue if he is elected president of the international chess federation. In his manifesto, one of his standout proposals is to allocate 20 per cent of FIDE’s revenue to its member associations. It will create a more direct link between FIDE and member associations, and also help in the development of chess around the world.

The idea has similarities to the model used by FIFA. In FIFA, revenues generated at the global level are redistributed to national associations through development programmes.

In accordance with FIFA Forward 3.0 (2023-26 cycle), member associations are entitled to up to USD 8 million. It is distributed as USD 5 million over four years (USD 1.25 million annually) to cover operations and running costs of routine football activities. Also, USD 3 million is given over four years to execute long-term projects. Meanwhile, up to USD 1.2 million in additional funding is provided over the cycle for associations termed as needing the most financial assistance.

FIDE takes a different approach currently. Under its Development Fund, it gives assistance to federations which actually need its help. The funding is based on factors including their developmental needs. In 2026, FIDE allocated 400,000 Euros specifically for national federations, in accordance with its 1.6 million Euro Development Fund.

FIDE labels national federations into five levels. Highly developed federations (Level 1) are usually excluded from standard grants.

Buettner feels that FIDE first needs to have a clearer understanding of its own finances, and so does he, before he can kickstart an aggressive commercial strategy. Also, for that, the German entrepreneur needs to win the elections.

Speaking to Sports Now, he said, “Yes, so first of all, the existing revenue of FIDE is not really 100% known to me because there’s a lot of intransparency in that process. So the first thing that we’re going to do is get an overview of what is actually there and where the revenues are coming from right now.”

He doesn’t want to just improve FIDE’s existing revenue streams. His ambitions are bigger.

“But as I know, the revenues are not coming from Western sponsors, which is basically my purview, and the people I have contacted during my Freestyle operations and also in my previous business history. So the sources of revenue will be basically from Western sponsors who are interested in sports sponsorship altogether. And we’re going to position chess at the highest premium there as well,” he said.

He also states that his immediate financial target would be to double FIDE’s existing revenue. “So my goal is to double the revenue that is currently collected by FIDE and go from there,” he said.

It also creates a parallel with FIFA’s increasingly aggressive commercial approach. FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s Forward Enterprise commercial was a controversial affair recently. It was designed to consolidate commercial rights and tournament operations, and additional revenue would fund its 211 member federations.

For Buettner, the goal is straightforward: to grow FIDE’s commercial value and also ensure that member federations benefit directly from that growth.