Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Slow Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
202,956 games: White 45.4% / Draw 3.2% / Black 51.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 107,483107K | ||
| Italian Game: Evans Gambit | 54,38454K | |
| 15,86816K | ||
| 13,50114K | ||
| 7,5467,546 | ||
| 1,9111,911 | ||
| 982982 | ||
| 562562 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
−0.35 Black is slightly better
Best play: 6... Nf6 7. d4 O-O 8. dxe5 Nxe4 9. Bd5 Nc5 10. Bg5 Qe8 11. Re1
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 White: White scores 48% under 1400, 45% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 24K | |
| 1400–1799 | 132K | |
| 1800–2199 | 114K | |
| 2200 and up | 7,123 | |
| Masters, over the board | 34 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Anand, V.
- Nakamura, H. – Amin, B.
- Annageldyev, O. – Ivanov, V. L.
- Maltsevskaya, A. – Lysyj, I.
- Djurhuus, R. – Stefansson, H.
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: Evans Gambit, Slow Variation (ECO C52, Open Games) is a gambit in the Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Main Line, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bxb4 5. c3 Ba5 6. O-O (6 moves).
In 202,956 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 45.4%, Black 51.4% and 3.2% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 6…Nf6, in 53% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Anderssen Defense and Italian Game: Evans Gambit. In all, 6 named lines continue from it.
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: Evans Gambit, Slow Variation
The most played answer, 6…Nf6, also scores best for Black: 54.9%, with Black winning 53.2% and White 43.5% of 107K games. Of the main answers, 6…Nge7 scores lowest: 51.5%. Stockfish's first choice is also 6…Nf6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black'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: Evans Gambit, Slow Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.0058% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.0079% (its peak: 0.0097% in 2021).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0079% | 2,819 |
| 2017 | 0.0096% | 5,274 |
| 2018 | 0.0094% | 7,370 |
| 2019 | 0.009% | 11,253 |
| 2020 | 0.0095% | 27,922 |
| 2021 | 0.0097% | 38,117 |
| 2022 | 0.0082% | 30,783 |
| 2023 | 0.0072% | 27,129 |
| 2024 | 0.0064% | 23,053 |
| 2025 | 0.0058% | 20,294 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0056% | 6,145 |
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 (3)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Slow Variation (C52)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-evans-gambit-slow-variation