English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Neo-Catalan Declined 5…O-O 6. b3
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Statistics from Lichess
284,052 games: White 49.9% / Draw 8.6% / Black 41.5%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Neo-Catalan Declined | 83,71884K | |
| 83,09083K | ||
| 46,82347K | ||
| 22,77923K | ||
| 13,36813K | ||
| 12,90213K | ||
| 11,06011K | ||
| 3,2793,279 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
0.00 The position is about equal
Best play: 6... d4 7. e3 c5 8. Ne5 Qc7 9. f4 Nbd7 10. Nd3 e5 11. Na3
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 | 382 | |
| 1400–1799 | 5,248 | |
| 1800–2199 | 105K | |
| 2200 and up | 174K | |
| Masters, over the board | 5,577 |
Master games
- Ding Liren – Giri, A.
- Kramnik, V. – Mamedyarov, S.
- Giri, A. – So, W.
- Kramnik, V. – Nakamura, H.
- Kramnik, V. – Nakamura, H.
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
English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Neo-Catalan Declined (ECO A14, Flank Openings) is a variation of the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Neo-Catalan Declined, reached after 1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. b3 (6 moves).
In 284,052 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.9%, Black 41.5% and 8.6% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 6…c5, in 29% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 6. b3
6…d4 scores best for Black: 48.8%, with Black winning 45.0% and White 47.5% of 23K games. The most played, 6…c5, scores 45.9% in 84K games, and 6…c6 scores lowest: 43.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 6…d4.
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
This line has gained ground since 2016: 0.012% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.0076% (its peak: 0.015% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0076% | 2,698 |
| 2017 | 0.0097% | 5,358 |
| 2018 | 0.015% | 11,545 |
| 2019 | 0.013% | 16,324 |
| 2020 | 0.013% | 38,553 |
| 2021 | 0.0098% | 38,418 |
| 2022 | 0.0097% | 36,374 |
| 2023 | 0.01% | 37,464 |
| 2024 | 0.011% | 38,306 |
| 2025 | 0.012% | 40,347 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.013% | 13,863 |
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
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Neo-Catalan Declined (A14)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/english-opening-agincourt-defense-neo-catalan-declined-2