Our story begins in Merano, where an arrogant American chess grandmaster, Frederick 'Freddie' Trumper faces off with the Russian challenger Anatoly Sergievsky. When Freddie's second, Florence Vassy, gets tired of dealing with his brash, unhinged behaviour, she leaves him for Anatoly. Freddie decides to resign from the match and Anatoly defects to the West, seeking asylum in England with the help of Florence.

One year later, Anatoly defends his title against a Soviet opponent in Bangkok with Freddie as the commentator for the tournament. The Soviet Union has also sent Anatoly's former wife Svetlana to Bangkok to publicly shame him for defecting. They also try to convince Florence to make Anatoly lose by informing her that her imprisoned father will be released from the Soviets if she complies. However, the Soviets' efforts prove fruitless when Freddie ultimately decides to give Anatoly crucial advice which helps him win the match. Anatoly returns to the USSR and Florence learns that no one actually knows if her father is still alive. Now alone and without hope, she breaks down, realising that she has been used as a pawn in a bigger game.