A01

Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Symmetrical Variation

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Statistics from Lichess

820,092 games: White 49.7% / Draw 5.3% / Black 45.1%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next move	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
	751,991752K
	13,80114K
	10,83011K
	9,7429,742
	7,7337,733
	6,1676,167
	5,8295,829
	2,5572,557

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.23 The position is about equal

Best play: 2. e4 Bb7 3. Nc3 e5 4. d4 Nf6 5. dxe5 Bb4 6. Bd2 Bxc3

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 48% under 1400, 47% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).

Players	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
Under 1400	251K
1400–1799	617K
1800–2199	407K
2200 and up	75K
Masters, over the board	244

Master games

Carlsen, M. – So, W. 1–0, 2021
Nakamura, H. – Caruana, F. 1–0, 2014
Karjakin, S. – Vachier Lagrave, M. ½–½, 2018
Nepomniachtchi, I. – Radjabov, T. 1–0, 2021
Caruana, F. – Harikrishna, P. 0–1, 2019

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

Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Symmetrical Variation (ECO A01, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Nimzo-Larsen Attack, reached after 1. b3 b6 (1 move).

In 820,092 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.7%, Black 45.1% and 5.3% were drawn. White's most played move here is 2. Bb2, in 92% of those games.

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Description

Popularity by year

The Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Symmetrical Variation has gained ground since 2016: 0.034% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.025%.

0.025%0.034%

Numbers by year

Year	Share of games	Games
2016	0.025%	8,755
2017	0.028%	15,572
2018	0.03%	23,536
2019	0.031%	38,735
2020	0.028%	82,313
2021	0.029%	115,207
2022	0.032%	119,616
2023	0.034%	129,441
2024	0.033%	119,901
2025	0.034%	116,980
2026 (Jan–Apr)	0.034%	37,420

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. “Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Symmetrical Variation (A01)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/nimzo-larsen-attack-symmetrical-variation