Tree path 7 levels King's Pawn Game › King's Knight Opening › Philidor Defense › Philidor Defense › Exchange Variation › Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation › Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation
- Chess Codex
- King's Pawn Game C20
- King's Knight Opening C40
- Philidor Defense C41
- Philidor Defense C41
- Exchange Variation C41
- Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation C41
- Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation C41 you are here
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation
Overview
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation is a named branch in the Open Games group of chess theory, classified under ECO C41.
The Open Games group covers open games — classical 1.e4 e5 openings where both sides contest the centre directly with pawns.
It begins with 8 plies and takes 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 to reach the canonical position.
In the opening tree, this line branches off from Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation, part of the broader King's Pawn Game system.
It continues primarily into one named line, Philidor Defense: Berger Variation.
Use the board to walk through every move, check how the position has scored on Lichess, or take it head-to-head against Stockfish.
- ECO code
- C41
- Group
- Open Games (C)
- Plies
- 8
- Direct variations
- 1
This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.
Statistics from Lichess
3,509,198 games · White 51.0% / Draw 5.0% / Black 44.0%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Nc3 | 2,759,926 | |
| Bd3 | 358,465 | |
| Bg5 | 198,451 | |
| Bc4 | 72,372 | |
| f3 | 61,835 | |
| Nd2 | 8,713 | |
| Bb5+ | 7,495 | |
| Qf3 | 5,472 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:51:19
Write a description
Markdown supported (headings ###, bold, lists, links).
Submissions are reviewed before publishing.