7 October – 19 December. World champion Garry Kasparov defends his title against challenger Anatoly Karpov in the 1987 World Championship in Seville. Kasparov was down 11–12 but won the 24th and final game of the match to tie and retain the title.
The inaugural Australasian Masters chess tournament is won by Grandmaster Darryl Johansen. This annual invitational event has been Australia's only round robin grandmaster event since 2013.
Józsa Lángos (28 August 1911 – 17 May 1987), Hungarian Woman International Master and eight-time winner of the Hungarian Women's Chess Championship (1942, 1943, 1944, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952).
Zsuzsa Makai (3 September 1945 – 12 May 1987), Hungarian and Romanian Woman International Master, two-time Olympian (1969 and 1978) and Hungarian Women's Champion (1980).
Stepan Popel (15 August 1909 – 27 December 1987), Ukrainian and American chess player.
Ignatz von Popiel (27 July 1863 – 2 May 1941), Polish-Ukrainian chess player.
Salme Rootare (26 March 1913 – 21 October 1987), Estonian Woman International Master and fifteen-time Estonian Women's Champion (1945, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1954, 1956, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, and 1972).
George Wheatcroft (29 October 1905 – 2 December 1987), English chess player, winner of the 1935 British Correspondence Chess Championship and President of the British Chess Federation from 1953 to 1956.
Mikhail Yudovich (8 June 1911 – 19 September 1987), Russian International Master, Grandmaster of Correspondence Chess, and chess writer.
