Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, with h6
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Statistics from Lichess
883,318 games: White 49.3% / Draw 5.0% / Black 45.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 231,935232K | ||
| 120,616121K | ||
| Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo | 119,952120K | |
| 114,285114K | ||
| Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo | 93,95294K | |
| 74,47274K | ||
| 55,57956K | ||
| 43,50344K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.16 The position is about equal
Best play: 7. Re1 O-O 8. Nbd2 a6 9. Nf1 Be6 10. Bxe6 fxe6 11. b4 Ba7
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 50% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up and 47% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 216K | |
| 1400–1799 | 635K | |
| 1800–2199 | 476K | |
| 2200 and up | 51K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,177 |
Master games
- Caruana, F. – Carlsen, M.
- Ding, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- So, W. – Carlsen, M.
- Giri, A. – Carlsen, 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
Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, with h6 (ECO C54, Open Games) is a variation of the Italian Game: Giuoco Piano, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 h6 (6 moves).
In 883,318 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.3%, Black 45.7% and 5.0% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. h3, in 26% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo and Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, with h6
7. a4 scores best for White: 54.6%, with White winning 52.0% and Black 42.9% of 114K games. The most played, 7. h3, scores 52.0% in 232K games, and 7. b4 scores lowest: 48.8%. Stockfish's first choice is 7. Re1.
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 Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, with h6 is played more than twice as often as in 2016: 0.037% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.017%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.017% | 6,117 |
| 2017 | 0.024% | 13,051 |
| 2018 | 0.026% | 20,309 |
| 2019 | 0.028% | 34,908 |
| 2020 | 0.032% | 94,088 |
| 2021 | 0.034% | 134,163 |
| 2022 | 0.036% | 136,217 |
| 2023 | 0.035% | 132,777 |
| 2024 | 0.037% | 132,532 |
| 2025 | 0.037% | 126,807 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.036% | 39,912 |
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)
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, with h6 (C54)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-classical-variation-giuoco-pianissimo-with-h6