| WILHELM STEINITZ | austria | 1866-1894 | |
| MANUEL LASKER | germania | 1894-1921 | |
| JOSE' RAUL CAPABLANCA | cuba | 1921-1927 | |
| ALEXANDER ALEKHINE | urss | 1927-1935 | |
| MAX EUWE | olanda | 1935-1937 | |
| ALEXANDER ALEKHINE | urss | 1937-1946 | |
| MIKHAIL BOTVINNIK | urss | 1948-1957 | |
| VASILY SMYSLOV | urss | 1957-1958 | |
| MIKHAIL BOTVINNIK | urss | 1958-1960 | |
| MIKHAIL TAL | urss | 1961-1961 | |
| MIKHAIL BOTVINNIK | urss | 1961-1963 | |
| TIGRAN PETROSIAN | urss | 1963-1969 | |
| BORIS SPASSKY | urss | 1969-1972 | |
| ROBERT J. FISCHER | usa | 1972-1976 | |
| ANATOLIJ KARPOV | urss | 1976-1985 | |
| GARRY KASPAROV | urss | 1985-1993 | |
| ANATOLIJ KARPOV | urss | 1993-1998 | |
| ALEXANDER KHALIFMAN | 1998-1999 | ||
| VISWANATHAN ANAND | india | 2000-2002 | |
| RUSLAN PONOMARIOV | 2002-2004 | ||
| RUSTAM KASIMDZHANOV | 2004-2005 | ||
| VASELIN TOPALOV | 2005 |
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