English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Flexible Line
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Statistics from Lichess
303,260 games: White 50.1% / Draw 5.5% / Black 44.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 100,146100K | ||
| 69,59470K | ||
| 67,42867K | ||
| 25,69826K | ||
| 14,07814K | ||
| 12,18912K | ||
| 5,4595,459 | ||
| 4,7664,766 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.05 The position is about equal
Best play: 4... d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. g3 Be7 7. Nxd5 Qxd5 8. Bg2 Be6 9. O-O
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 53% under 1400, 52% at 2200 and up and 55% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 101K | |
| 1400–1799 | 203K | |
| 1800–2199 | 165K | |
| 2200 and up | 28K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,111 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Ding Liren
- Carlsen, M. – Aronian, L.
- Carlsen, M. – So, W.
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Caruana, F. – Karjakin, S.
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, Flexible Line (ECO A28, Flank Openings) is a variation of the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, reached after 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. d3 (4 moves).
In 303,260 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.1%, Black 44.4% and 5.5% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 4…Bb4, in 33% 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, Flexible Line
4…d5 scores best for Black: 48.4%, with Black winning 45.5% and White 48.7% of 70K games. The most played, 4…Bb4, scores 46.8% in 100K games, and 4…d6 scores lowest: 45.4%. Stockfish's first choice is also 4…d5.
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 English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Flexible Line has lost ground since 2016: 0.011% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.015%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.015% | 5,227 |
| 2017 | 0.013% | 6,989 |
| 2018 | 0.012% | 9,643 |
| 2019 | 0.013% | 15,703 |
| 2020 | 0.013% | 39,396 |
| 2021 | 0.012% | 47,277 |
| 2022 | 0.011% | 41,257 |
| 2023 | 0.011% | 42,520 |
| 2024 | 0.011% | 38,529 |
| 2025 | 0.011% | 38,806 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.011% | 12,482 |
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, Flexible Line (A28)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/english-opening-kings-english-variation-four-knights-variation-flexible-line