Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Main Line
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Statistics from Lichess
649,835 games: White 46.8% / Draw 6.0% / Black 47.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 371,841372K | ||
| 84,45484K | ||
| 62,24762K | ||
| Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Panov Variation | 58,54859K | |
| Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Alekhine Variation | 50,13950K | |
| 6,8086,808 | ||
| 3,1243,124 | ||
| 2,6342,634 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 2, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.80 White is better
Best play: 5. c4 Nb6 6. exd6 exd6 7. h3 Bxf3 8. Qxf3 Nc6 9. Be3 g6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 46% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up and 40% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 24K | |
| 1400–1799 | 137K | |
| 1800–2199 | 385K | |
| 2200 and up | 172K | |
| Masters, over the board | 3,335 |
Master games
- Navara, D. – Rapport, R.
- Navara, D. – Rapport, R.
- Anand, V. – Maghsoodloo, P.
- Spassky, B. V. – Fischer, R. J.
- Adams, M. – Ponomariov, R.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Main Line (ECO B05, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, reached after 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 Bg4 (4 moves).
In 649,835 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.8%, Black 47.2% and 6.0% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. Be2, in 57% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Panov Variation and Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Alekhine Variation. In all, 4 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Main Line
The most played answer, 5. Be2, also scores best for White: 51.0%, with White winning 47.7% and Black 45.7% of 372K games. Of the main answers, 5. c4 scores lowest: 46.1%. Stockfish's first choice is 5. c4.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Main Line has lost ground since 2016: 0.022% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.032% (its peak: 0.039% in 2017).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.032% | 11,365 |
| 2017 | 0.039% | 21,395 |
| 2018 | 0.039% | 30,440 |
| 2019 | 0.032% | 39,507 |
| 2020 | 0.028% | 82,128 |
| 2021 | 0.024% | 94,899 |
| 2022 | 0.024% | 88,429 |
| 2023 | 0.023% | 87,355 |
| 2024 | 0.023% | 82,437 |
| 2025 | 0.022% | 76,797 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.022% | 24,477 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (3)
All 4 named lines that continue from here
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Main Line (B05)”. Lichess data as of 2 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/alekhine-defense-modern-variation-main-line