Carlsen, who tops the Champions Chess Tour standings, heads a shining line-up of eight of the world’s best chess players, which also includes Dutchman Anish Giri and Poland's Jan-Krzysztof Duda. 

Duda earned his spot in the competition after finishing runner-up in the Charity Cup, where he narrowly lost to Carlsen.

The Champions Chess Tour is a series of online tournaments but is breaking new ground at the Oslo Esports Cup.

While all players will still compete online, they will be in the same place for the first time - the chess24.com studio in Norway's capital.

Top-ranked Vietnamese player Lê Quang Liêm and Canadian chess player and Twitch streamer Eric Hansen both secured their spots through astonishing performances on the Champions Chess Tour up to now. 

The 16-year-old Indian prodigy Rameshbabu "Pragg" Praggnanandhaa, who beat Carlsen in the Airthings Masters, will also be in attendance after a memorable victory in the Reykjavik Open.

Praggnanandhaa is the fifth-youngest person ever to achieve the title of grandmaster, behind American Abhimanyu Mishra, Russian Sergey Karjakin, compatriot Dommaraju Gukesh and Uzbekistan's Javokhir Sindarov.  

Also invited are Azerbaijan number one and world number 10 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, along with 2021 Tata Steel Masters winner and Dutch number two Jorden van Foreest.

After winning both the Airthings Masters and the Charity Cup, Carlsen leads with $63,500 (£48,774/€58,842) in prize money over second placed Duda on $25,000 (£19,205/€23,166). 

The tournament is set to run from April 22 to 28, with an Opening Ceremony taking place on April 21. 

Eight players will go head-to-head over seven rounds, with each match featuring four rapid games. 

The total prize fund is $210,000 (£161,000/€195,000), with $7,500 (£5,750/€6,950) up for grabs in each match.

Money earned also goes towards the overall Champions Chess Tour standings, while the winner of the Tour will win an additional $50,000 (£38,399/€46,332).