English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Nb6
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Statistics from Lichess
180,371 games: White 46.9% / Draw 7.5% / Black 45.6%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 147,095147K | ||
| 24,58225K | ||
| 3,5123,512 | ||
| 1,0731,073 | ||
| 1,0621,062 | ||
| 1,0021,002 | ||
| 817817 | ||
| 351351 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 6, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.09 The position is about equal
Best play: 7. O-O Be7 8. a3 O-O 9. d3 Be6 10. Be3 f5 11. Rc1 Kh8
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 | 721 | |
| 1400–1799 | 10K | |
| 1800–2199 | 92K | |
| 2200 and up | 80K | |
| Masters, over the board | 7,137 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Aronian, L.
- So, W. – Carlsen, M.
- Giri, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Kramnik, 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
English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Nb6 (ECO A29, Flank Openings) is a variation of the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, reached after 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 (6 moves).
In 180,371 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.9%, Black 45.6% and 7.5% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. O-O, in 82% 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 English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Nb6
The most played answer, 7. O-O, also scores best for White: 51.0%, with White winning 47.2% and Black 45.2% of 147K games. Of the main answers, 7. d3 scores lowest: 49.2%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7. O-O.
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 English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Nb6 peaked in 2018 at 0.0097% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.0065% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.007% | 2,512 |
| 2017 | 0.0085% | 4,703 |
| 2018 | 0.0097% | 7,624 |
| 2019 | 0.0093% | 11,649 |
| 2020 | 0.0097% | 28,325 |
| 2021 | 0.0063% | 24,704 |
| 2022 | 0.006% | 22,494 |
| 2023 | 0.0062% | 23,161 |
| 2024 | 0.0063% | 22,526 |
| 2025 | 0.0065% | 22,566 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0065% | 7,156 |
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. “English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Nb6 (A29)”. Lichess data as of 6 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/english-opening-kings-english-variation-four-knights-variation-fianchetto-line-with-nb6