Tree path 6 levels King's Pawn Game › King's Knight Opening › Philidor Defense › Philidor Defense › Nimzowitsch Variation › Philidor Defense: Nimzowitsch Variation
- Chess Codex
- King's Pawn Game C20
- King's Knight Opening C40
- Philidor Defense C41
- Philidor Defense C41
- Nimzowitsch Variation C41
- Philidor Defense: Nimzowitsch Variation C41 you are here
Philidor Defense: Nimzowitsch Variation
Overview
Philidor Defense: Nimzowitsch 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 is reached after 7 plies of play, with the move sequence 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. dxe5.
In the opening tree, this line branches off from Philidor Defense: Nimzowitsch Variation, part of the broader King's Pawn Game system.
2 named variations grow from this line, including Rellstab Variation, Sokolsky 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
- 7
- Direct variations
- 2
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
390,186 games · White 56.1% / Draw 5.4% / Black 38.6%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Nxe4 | 245,796 | |
| dxe5 | 125,475 | |
| Ng4 | 8,215 | |
| Nfd7 | 7,785 | |
| Be7 | 720 | |
| Bg4 | 536 | |
| Nc6 | 522 | |
| Ng8 | 428 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:38:48
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