Tree path 5 levels Queen's Pawn Game › Queen's Gambit › Queen's Gambit Accepted › Normal Variation › Queen's Gambit Accepted: Alekhine Defense
- Chess Codex
- Queen's Pawn Game D00
- Queen's Gambit D06
- Queen's Gambit Accepted D20
- Normal Variation D21
- Queen's Gambit Accepted: Alekhine Defense D22 you are here
Queen's Gambit Accepted: Alekhine Defense
Overview
Queen's Gambit Accepted: Alekhine Defense belongs to the gambit family of chess openings (ECO D22, Closed & Semi-Closed Games). It trades material for attacking chances — a classic trade-off that has fascinated players from the Romantic era to modern correspondence chess.
The Closed & Semi-Closed Games group covers closed and semi-closed games — 1.d4 systems characterised by long strategic manoeuvring rather than early tactics.
It begins with 6 plies and takes 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 a6 to reach the canonical position.
The line refines Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation, which traces back to the root opening Queen's Pawn Game.
The line splits into 3 documented sub-systems: Alatortsev Variation, Borisenko-Furman Variation, Haberditz Variation.
Explore the position on the interactive board, study its real-world results from Lichess, and challenge the engine when you are ready.
- ECO code
- D22
- Group
- Closed & Semi-Closed Games (D)
- Plies
- 6
- Direct variations
- 3
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
130,888 games · White 50.6% / Draw 6.1% / Black 43.3%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| a4 | 44,482 | |
| e3 | 44,061 | |
| e4 | 15,014 | |
| Nc3 | 12,288 | |
| g3 | 10,480 | |
| Bf4 | 1,570 | |
| Qa4+ | 1,108 | |
| Bg5 | 745 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:30:05
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Submissions are reviewed before publishing.