Italian Game: Classical Variation, La Bourdonnais Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
1,124,093 games: White 47.7% / Draw 4.1% / Black 48.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 372,292372K | ||
| 237,112237K | ||
| 142,889143K | ||
| 130,105130K | ||
| 64,25864K | ||
| 38,11338K | ||
| 36,82637K | ||
| 33,02433K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 26, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.39 White is slightly better
Best play: 7. Bb5 Bd7 8. Nc3 Nge7 9. O-O O-O 10. h3 h6 11. Be3 f5
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 49% under 1400, 47% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 230K | |
| 1400–1799 | 757K | |
| 1800–2199 | 647K | |
| 2200 and up | 32K | |
| Masters, over the board | 97 |
Master games
- Wei Yi – Piorun, K.
- Iordachescu, V. – Rapport, R.
- Bosiocic, M. – Gareev, T.
- Liang, A. – Escalante Ramirez, B.
- Hakobyan, A. – Malek, J.
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, La Bourdonnais Variation (ECO C53, Open Games) is a variation of the Italian Game: Classical Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 d6 5. d4 exd4 6. cxd4 Bb6 (6 moves).
In 1,124,093 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.7%, Black 48.1% and 4.1% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. O-O, 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 Italian Game: Classical Variation, La Bourdonnais Variation
7. h3 scores best for White: 55.5%, with White winning 53.4% and Black 42.4% of 143K games. The most played, 7. O-O, scores 48.7% in 372K games, and 7. Ng5 scores lowest: 41.8%. Stockfish's first choice is 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
The Italian Game: Classical Variation, La Bourdonnais Variation has gained ground since 2016: 0.049% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.025%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.025% | 8,833 |
| 2017 | 0.031% | 16,854 |
| 2018 | 0.031% | 24,687 |
| 2019 | 0.034% | 42,305 |
| 2020 | 0.036% | 106,531 |
| 2021 | 0.043% | 169,134 |
| 2022 | 0.045% | 167,165 |
| 2023 | 0.047% | 177,834 |
| 2024 | 0.048% | 170,354 |
| 2025 | 0.049% | 170,224 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.048% | 52,555 |
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. “Italian Game: Classical Variation, La Bourdonnais Variation (C53)”. Lichess data as of 26 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-classical-variation-la-bourdonnais-variation