A World Chess Championship was played between Tigran Petrosian and Boris Spassky in Moscow from April 9 to June 9, 1966. Petrosian won.

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World Chess Championship 1966

	Defending champion	Challenger
	Tigran Petrosian	Boris Spassky
	12½ Scores 11½
	Born 17 June 1929 36 years old	Born 30 January 1937 29 years old
	Winner of the 1963 World Chess Championship	Winner of the 1965 Candidates Tournament
← 1963 1969 →

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An interzonal tournament was held in Amsterdam in the Netherlands in May and June 1964. Six spots in the Candidates tournament were on the line.

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1964 Interzonal Tournament

		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	Total
1	Vasily Smyslov (Soviet Union)	–	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	1	½	1	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	1	1	1	17
2	Bent Larsen (Denmark)	½	–	1	½	0	1	0	½	1	½	1	1	1	½	½	½	1	1	½	1	1	1	1	1	17
3	Boris Spassky (Soviet Union)	½	0	–	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	0	½	1	½	1	1	½	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	17
4	Mikhail Tal (Soviet Union)	½	½	½	–	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	1	½	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	17
5	Leonid Stein (Soviet Union)	½	1	½	½	–	0	1	½	0	1	½	1	½	1	1	1	1	½	½	½	1	1	1	1	16½
6	David Bronstein (Soviet Union)	½	0	½	½	1	–	½	½	½	½	1	½	½	1	½	½	1	1	1	½	1	1	1	1	16
7	Borislav Ivkov (Yugoslavia)	½	1	½	½	0	½	–	½	½	½	0	1	1	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	½	1	1	1	15
8	Samuel Reshevsky (United States)	½	½	0	½	½	½	½	–	½	½	½	½	½	1	½	½	1	½	½	1	1	1	1	1	14½
9	Lajos Portisch (Hungary)	0	0	0	½	1	½	½	½	–	½	0	½	½	1	1	1	½	1	½	1	1	1	1	1	14½
10	Svetozar Gligorić (Yugoslavia)	0	½	0	½	0	½	½	½	½	–	½	1	1	½	1	½	1	½	1	1	0	1	1	1	14
11	Klaus Darga (West Germany)	0	0	1	½	½	0	1	½	1	½	–	0	½	1	½	1	½	½	1	1	½	½	1	½	13½
12	Levente Lengyel (Hungary)	0	0	½	½	0	½	0	½	½	0	1	–	½	½	1	½	1	½	½	1	1	1	1	1	13
13	Luděk Pachman (Czechoslovakia)	½	0	0	0	½	½	0	½	½	0	½	½	–	½	1	½	1	1	1	1	1	1	½	½	12½
14	Larry Evans (United States)	0	½	½	0	0	0	½	0	0	½	0	½	½	–	1	½	0	1	1	1	½	½	1	½	10
15	Georgi Tringov (Bulgaria)	½	½	0	0	0	½	½	½	0	0	½	0	0	0	–	½	1	½	½	1	½	½	1	1	9½
16	Pal Benko (United States)	½	½	0	0	0	½	½	½	0	½	0	½	½	½	½	–	½	0	1	0	1	½	½	½	9
17	Héctor Rossetto (Argentina)	½	0	½	½	0	0	½	0	½	0	½	0	0	1	0	½	–	½	½	½	0	1	0	1	8
18	Alberto Foguelman (Argentina)	½	0	0	0	½	0	0	½	0	½	½	½	0	0	½	1	½	–	0	0	1	1	0	1	8
19	István Bilek (Hungary)	0	½	0	0	½	0	0	½	½	0	0	½	0	0	½	0	½	1	–	½	1	1	½	½	8
20	Oscar Quiñones (Peru)	0	0	0	0	½	½	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	½	1	½	–	½	1	½	1	7
21	Yosef Porat (Israel)	0	0	0	0	0	0	½	0	0	1	½	0	0	½	½	0	1	0	0	½	–	0	½	½	5½
22	Francisco José Pérez (Cuba)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	½	0	0	½	½	½	0	0	0	0	1	–	1	1	5
23	Béla Berger (Australia)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	½	0	0	½	1	1	½	½	½	0	–	0	4½
24	Zvonko Vranesic (Canada)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	½	0	½	½	0	½	0	0	½	0	½	0	1	–	4

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Since FIDE rules only allowed a maximum of three players from the same nation to qualify from the interzonal, Stein and Bronstein were ineligible. Instead Ivkov qualified. The sixth and final place in the Candidates Tournament was decided in a 4-game playoff in which Portisch beat Reshevsky 2½–½.

Bobby Fischer, the winner of the previous Interzonal in 1962, declined his invitation, despite qualifying by winning the 1963–64 US Championship.^[1]

After the controversy surrounding the previous Candidates tournament, the 1965 tournament was the first to be played as a knock-out series of matches.

Two players were seeded directly into the tournament: Mikhail Botvinnik (loser of the last championship match) and Paul Keres (2nd place in the 1962 Candidates). Botvinnik declined, and his place was taken by Efim Geller, who finished 3rd in the 1962 Candidates.

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Final

Riga, Apr 1965

Boris Spassky

6

Riga, May–June 1965

Paul Keres

4

Boris Spassky

5½

Moscow, Apr 1965

Efim Geller

2½

Vasily Smyslov

2½

Tbilisi, Nov 1965

Efim Geller

5½

Boris Spassky

7

Bled, June–July 1965

Mikhail Tal

4

Bent Larsen

5½

Bled, July–Aug 1965

Borislav Ivkov

2½

Bent Larsen

4½

Third place

Bled, June–July 1965

Mikhail Tal

5½

Lajos Portisch

2½

Bent Larsen

5

Mikhail Tal

5½

Efim Geller

4

Spassky won, earning the right to challenge champion Petrosian for the title.

Larsen and Geller played a third place playoff in Copenhagen, Denmark in March 1966. Larsen won 5–4.

The match was played as best of 24 games, with the champion (Petrosian) retaining the title in the event of a 12–12 tie.

While Petrosian retained the title with a 12–10 lead after Game 22, he and Spassky decided to play the final two games anyway.^[2]

This was the first World Chess Championship match since 1934 in which the reigning World Chess Champion defeated his opponent.

More information Points ...

World Chess Championship Match 1966^[3]

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	Points
Tigran Petrosian (Soviet Union)	½	½	½	½	½	½	1	½	½	1	½	½	0	½	½	½	½	½	0	1	½	1	0	½	12½
Boris Spassky (Soviet Union)	½	½	½	½	½	½	0	½	½	0	½	½	1	½	½	½	½	½	1	0	½	0	1	½	11½

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