Tree path 12 levels French Defense › Normal Variation › French Defense › Paulsen Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation › Advance Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation › French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation
- Chess Codex
- French Defense C00
- Normal Variation C00
- French Defense C00
- Paulsen Variation C10
- French Defense: Winawer Variation C15
- Advance Variation C16
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation C17
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation C17
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation C18
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation C18
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation C19
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation C19 you are here
French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation
Overview
French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation is a named branch in the Open Games group of chess theory, classified under ECO C19.
The Open Games group covers open games — classical 1.e4 e5 openings where both sides contest the centre directly with pawns.
The line arises from 17 plies — specifically the moves 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Ne7 7. a4 Nbc6 8. Nf3 Qa5 9. Bd2.
In the opening tree, this line branches off from French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation, part of the broader French Defense system.
2 named variations grow from this line, including French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation, French Defense: Winawer Variation, Positional Variation.
Use the board to walk through every move, check how the position has scored on Lichess, or take it head-to-head against Stockfish.
- ECO code
- C19
- Group
- Open Games (C)
- Plies
- 17
- Direct variations
- 2
This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.
Statistics from Lichess
10,921 games · White 50.6% / Draw 5.9% / Black 43.5%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Bd7 | 6,191 | |
| c4 | 2,539 | |
| O-O | 778 | |
| Qc7 | 478 | |
| Nf5 | 219 | |
| f6 | 170 | |
| b6 | 128 | |
| Qb6 | 123 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 03:15:03
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