Italian Game: Classical Variation, Greco Gambit, Modern Line 6. e5 d5
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Statistics from Lichess
589,942 games: White 45.2% / Draw 5.9% / Black 48.9%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 398,235398K | ||
| 109,028109K | ||
| 23,23823K | ||
| 22,83123K | ||
| 14,89815K | ||
| 14,55815K | ||
| 4,0814,081 | ||
| 1,4981,498 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.19 The position is about equal
Best play: 7. Bb5 Ne4 8. cxd4 Bb6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Nc3 f5 11. exf6 Nxf6
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 53% under 1400, 50% at 2200 and up and 46% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 16K | |
| 1400–1799 | 168K | |
| 1800–2199 | 374K | |
| 2200 and up | 91K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,745 |
Master games
- Nepomniachtchi, I. – Carlsen, M.
- So, W. – Carlsen, M.
- Giri, A. – Carlsen, M.
- So, W. – Carlsen, M.
- So, W. – 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, Greco Gambit, Modern Line (ECO C54, Open Games) is a gambit in the Italian Game: Classical Variation, Greco Gambit, Modern Line, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d4 exd4 6. e5 d5 (6 moves).
In 589,942 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 45.2%, Black 48.9% and 5.9% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. Bb5, in 68% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Italian Game: Classical Variation, Greco Gambit, Anderssen Variation.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 6…d5
The most played answer, 7. Bb5, also scores best for White: 51.8%, with White winning 48.5% and Black 44.9% of 398K games. Of the main answers, 7. exf6 scores lowest: 38.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7. Bb5.
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 is played more than twice as often as in 2016: 0.024% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.011%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.011% | 3,820 |
| 2017 | 0.015% | 8,118 |
| 2018 | 0.018% | 14,047 |
| 2019 | 0.017% | 21,298 |
| 2020 | 0.021% | 61,013 |
| 2021 | 0.023% | 89,213 |
| 2022 | 0.024% | 89,699 |
| 2023 | 0.025% | 95,739 |
| 2024 | 0.025% | 89,642 |
| 2025 | 0.024% | 82,715 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.024% | 26,116 |
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 (1)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Classical Variation, Greco Gambit, Modern Line (C54)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-classical-variation-greco-gambit-modern-line-2