Publicity in public is bad publicity, they say, but chess is now putting the kibosh on that old adage. One of the reasons the chess story is so entertaining is because of all the shenanigans and scandals over the years, but what is happening now has been called the biggest scandal in history. That may not be an exaggeration.

In short, after Grandmaster Hans Niemann defeated World Champion Magnus Carlsen in the Sinkfield Cup in early September, Carlsen implied that Niemann was cheating. This accusation was widely reported before Carlsen accused Niemann of cheating after Niemann drew with him in an online tournament and surrendered in one move.

Here are the details. Later, Chess.com published its own report claiming that Neiman cheated in "over 100" games.

So the accusations against Neiman fly thick and fast, and the Chess.com report certainly shows that Neiman has admitted to cheating in the past. However, there is no hard evidence of what did or did not happen in the game against Carlsen, and in the absence of proof, the Internet has constructed its own edifice of half-truths and nonsense, including the utterly fabricated idea that Neiman used "anal beads" to receive signals

Niemann's own "nonsense.

Neiman continues to insist on his innocence. The Grand Master's attorneys have filed suit in Neiman's home state of Missouri (open in new tab).

"Neiman is a 19-year-old self-taught chess prodigy. He brings this lawsuit to recover from the devastating damage Defendants have inflicted on his reputation, career, and life."

The lawsuit is filed against Carlsen and several defendants, including Carlsen's chess company Play Magnus, Chess.com, Daniel Lensch, and Hikaru Nakamura. Carlsen, however, is arguably the prime target of some sort. Lawyers have zeroed in on Carlsen, arguably the greatest chess player in the world, and basically portray him as a spoiled brat trying to monopolize the sport, whether by fair means or foul.

"Carlsen has cemented his status as the 'king of chess' and believes he can do whatever he wants and get away with it when it comes to chess," Niemann's lawyer wrote. He also described the circumstances of the Sinkfield Cup match between the two men, noting that had Carlsen won, he would have set historical records, including a possible FIDE rating of 2900, the highest ever.

"To make matters worse for Carlsen, Niemann playfully taunted and humiliated Carlsen in the post-match interview," the complaint states. What Niemann said after the match was, "It must be embarrassing for the world champion to lose to me. I feel sorry for him."

"Carlsen, who is notorious for his inability to cope with defeat, snapped," the complaint continues, furious that Niemann, 12 years younger, had disrespected the "king of chess" and fearing that the young genius would further damage his multi-million dollar brand by beating Carlsen again and maliciously retaliated against Niemann." Without any evidence, he falsely accused Niemann of committing some kind of fraud during a direct game and demanded that the organizers of the Sinquefield Cup immediately disqualify Niemann from the tournament."

This lawsuit has a lot to say about Carlsen, so let's pause for a moment. Immediately following, it describes the above demand as "corrupt and cowardly" and details Carlsen's "slanderous accusations," among other things.

This is a highly confrontational account of events and suggests a motive for Carlsen's actions that is essentially unprovable. He does not even acknowledge the possibility that Carlsen made a mistake. No, this was a deliberate plot to bring Niemann down.

In any event, this is the essence of the adversarial system, and Carlsen's co-defendants are being treated similarly. Most incendiary, however, is the claim by Niemann's lawyer that these groups conspired with Niemann, at Carlsen's behest, to ruin Niemann's career.

"[Carlsen] has unleashed the full might of his newly expanded media empire to publicly reinforce the allegations and to drown out legitimate sources of rebuttal that would prove why Carlsen's allegations are untrue. Shortly after Carlsen withdrew from the Thinkfield Cup, Chess.com banned Niemann from its website, deleted his slack account, and banned him from future Chess.com events.

"Intentionally, this sudden banning, at the precise time Carlsen accused Neiman of misconduct, immediately added credence to Carlsen's false allegations and suggested that they were true. Otherwise, there would be no reason for Chess.com to suddenly ban Neiman immediately after defeating Carlsen.

"To reinforce this unprecedented co-ban, which effectively banned Niemann from professional chess, Nakamura used Chess.com's top streamer platform and credibility as a top chess player to . made full-blown defamatory accusations to further confirm and make it appear as if the accusations were true"

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The complaint goes on to list various things that Nakamura said in his stream. They are quite frank about his belief that Neiman was dishonest. And perhaps the most infamous element of this scandal,

"Conspiracy theories began to circulate on the Internet, not about whether Neiman actually cheated, but rather about how he might have cheated in a board game with strict anti-cheating protocols. Rather, the focus was on how he might have cheated in a board game with strict anti-cheating protocols. These conspiracy theories attracted the attention of many, including Elon Musk, who spread them in a Twitter post, and Stephen Colbert, who spread them on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

The lawsuit has more fine details, but it also states that Chess.com's publication of a "one-sided, self-serving, and defamatory hit piece" on the morning of a big tournament that Neiman hoped would impress and begin to salvage his credibility was also part of the conspiracy. He goes on to detail the attempts to keep Niemann out of the professional chess world (such as the prospect of whether Nakamura should be allowed to play in the U.S. Open), all of which are elements of this overarching Carlsen conspiracy theory, before moving on to the five accusations.

These are slander, libel, violation of the Sherman Act, tortious interference with contract and business expectations (this includes Neiman's various contracts, tournament entries, etc.), and drum roll please... Civil Conspiracy.

The charge of violating the Sherman Act is particularly interesting because it is a federal statute of antitrust law. In other words, Carlsen et al. violated it by attempting to strike down a potential competitor. All charges were brought against all defendants, and in four of the five counts Niemann's attorneys are seeking $100 million in damages; in the fourth charge, the contract-related one, they are seeking damages to be determined by the court.

Just when you thought everything had quieted down. Hikaru Nakamura's reaction video to this one is interesting (neither he nor Carlsen have commented on the lawsuit). And finally: this is a completely one-sided document, and there is no doubt that the person or entity defending it can afford a very good lawyer.

There are also some obvious facts in Carlsen's favor, at least with regard to the "keep Nieman in check" aspect. It is, first of all, that Carlsen has never dodged the toughest competition. Second, and this has to do with Carlsen's attempt to maintain his fiefdom, the world champion has announced his intention to vacate the title. If what Neiman's lawyers are saying is true, it is a strange move.

Nevertheless, there is no doubt that stranger things are happening and that this scandal has accelerated at a rapid pace. We will probably never know for sure what happened in the Sinkfield Cup match between these two men, even though it is destined to be talked about for years to come. There is also the question of whether, without hard evidence of cheating, chess grandmasters can bar their players from the tournament circuit where they make their living.

But one thing is clear: Neiman said he did not cheat, and now he is attacking all those who say he does.