Benoni Defense: Classical Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
483,610 games: White 46.0% / Draw 5.3% / Black 48.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 416,104416K | ||
| 33,85134K | ||
| 28,52329K | ||
| 4,0994,099 | ||
| 423423 | ||
| 127127 | ||
| 8888 | ||
| 6363 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 27, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.65 White is slightly better
Best play: 7... a6 8. Be2 Bg7 9. O-O O-O 10. a4 Bg4 11. Bf4 Bxf3 12. Bxf3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 48% under 1400, 50% at 2200 and up and 55% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 4,003 | |
| 1400–1799 | 62K | |
| 1800–2199 | 307K | |
| 2200 and up | 129K | |
| Masters, over the board | 3,500 |
Master games
- So, W. – Caruana, F.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Caruana, F.
- Aronian, L. – Caruana, F.
- So, W. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Karpov, A. – Topalov, V.
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
Benoni Defense: Classical Variation (ECO A70, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Benoni Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nc3 g6 7. e4 (7 moves).
In 483,610 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.0%, Black 48.7% and 5.3% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 7…Bg7, in 86% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Benoni Defense: Classical Variation, New York Variation and Benoni Defense: Classical Variation, Traditional Variation. In all, 5 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 Benoni Defense: Classical Variation
7…a6 scores best for Black: 55.4%, with Black winning 52.3% and White 41.6% of 34K games. The most played, 7…Bg7, scores 51.2% in 416K games, and 7…Bg4 scores lowest: 50.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7…a6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black'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 Benoni Defense: Classical Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.017% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.024% (its peak: 0.029% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.024% | 8,739 |
| 2017 | 0.025% | 14,017 |
| 2018 | 0.029% | 22,928 |
| 2019 | 0.025% | 31,060 |
| 2020 | 0.022% | 65,372 |
| 2021 | 0.017% | 65,945 |
| 2022 | 0.017% | 63,776 |
| 2023 | 0.017% | 63,954 |
| 2024 | 0.017% | 60,617 |
| 2025 | 0.017% | 59,266 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.017% | 19,143 |
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)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Benoni Defense: Classical Variation (A70)”. Lichess data as of 27 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/benoni-defense-classical-variation