French Defense: Classical Variation 5. Nxe4 Be7
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Statistics from Lichess
1,282,449 games: White 50.2% / Draw 6.3% / Black 43.5%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 710,407710K | ||
| 382,169382K | ||
| 54,13754K | ||
| 44,69445K | ||
| 26,59627K | ||
| 17,69118K | ||
| 11,52812K | ||
| 7,4277,427 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.26 The position is about equal
Best play: 6. Nxf6+ Bxf6 7. Bxf6 Qxf6 8. Nf3 O-O 9. Qd3 Rd8 10. O-O-O Nc6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 52% under 1400, 44% at 2200 and up and 48% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 57K | |
| 1400–1799 | 387K | |
| 1800–2199 | 827K | |
| 2200 and up | 185K | |
| Masters, over the board | 4,323 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Grischuk, A.
- Gashimov, V. – Anand, V.
- Gashimov, V. – Carlsen, M.
- Kasparov, G. – Bareev, E.
- Kasparov, G. – Gurevich, M.
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
French Defense: Classical Variation (ECO C13, Open Games) is a variation of the French Defense: Classical Variation, Burn Variation, reached after 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 dxe4 5. Nxe4 Be7 (5 moves).
In 1,282,449 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.2%, Black 43.5% and 6.3% were drawn. White's most played move here is 6. Bxf6, in 55% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are French Defense: Classical Variation, Burn Variation, Main Line and French Defense: Classical Variation, Burn Variation, Morozevich Line.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 5…Be7
The most played answer, 6. Bxf6, also scores best for White: 57.3%, with White winning 54.1% and Black 39.6% of 710K games. Of the main answers, 6. Nxf6+ scores lowest: 50.4%. Stockfish's first choice is 6. Nxf6+.
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
This line peaked in 2018 at 0.06% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.049% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.05% | 18,035 |
| 2017 | 0.058% | 32,142 |
| 2018 | 0.06% | 47,115 |
| 2019 | 0.056% | 69,679 |
| 2020 | 0.057% | 165,831 |
| 2021 | 0.048% | 185,835 |
| 2022 | 0.045% | 170,583 |
| 2023 | 0.046% | 173,806 |
| 2024 | 0.048% | 172,981 |
| 2025 | 0.049% | 169,686 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.051% | 55,631 |
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 (2)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “French Defense: Classical Variation (C13)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/french-defense-classical-variation-3