Dutch Defense: Leningrad Variation, Warsaw Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
204,250 games: White 49.0% / Draw 6.8% / Black 44.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 42,89243K | ||
| 42,79343K | ||
| 26,94327K | ||
| 24,01724K | ||
| 21,76222K | ||
| 8,7478,747 | ||
| 6,7406,740 | ||
| 5,7335,733 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 26, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.51 White is slightly better
Best play: 8. Qb3 h6 9. Be3 Na6 10. Rad1 Qe8 11. d5 c5 12. Bd2 Nc7
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 904 | |
| 1400–1799 | 16K | |
| 1800–2199 | 116K | |
| 2200 and up | 75K | |
| Masters, over the board | 4,041 |
Master games
- Caruana, F. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Aronian, L. – Nakamura, H.
- Kramnik, V. – Caruana, F.
- Karjakin, S. – Caruana, F.
- Wojtaszek, R. – Caruana, F.
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
Dutch Defense: Leningrad Variation, Warsaw Variation (ECO A88, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Dutch Defense: Semi-Leningrad Variation, reached after 1. d4 f5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. O-O O-O 6. c4 d6 7. Nc3 c6 (7 moves).
In 204,250 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.0%, Black 44.2% and 6.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 8. d5, in 21% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Dutch Defense: Leningrad Variation, Warsaw Variation
The most played answer, 8. d5, also scores best for White: 55.5%, with White winning 51.6% and Black 40.6% of 43K games. Of the main answers, 8. Bg5 scores lowest: 49.7%. Stockfish's first choice is 8. Qb3.
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 Dutch Defense: Leningrad Variation, Warsaw Variation dipped to 0.0071% of Lichess games in 2021 and has recovered since: 0.0084% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0076% | 2,725 |
| 2017 | 0.0082% | 4,537 |
| 2018 | 0.009% | 7,032 |
| 2019 | 0.0088% | 11,015 |
| 2020 | 0.0093% | 27,168 |
| 2021 | 0.0071% | 27,830 |
| 2022 | 0.0072% | 26,859 |
| 2023 | 0.0071% | 26,861 |
| 2024 | 0.0078% | 27,833 |
| 2025 | 0.0084% | 29,130 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0085% | 9,347 |
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Dutch Defense: Leningrad Variation, Warsaw Variation (A88)”. Lichess data as of 26 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/dutch-defense-leningrad-variation-warsaw-variation