Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Normal Line
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Statistics from Lichess
263,582 games: White 46.3% / Draw 10.0% / Black 43.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Main Line | 129,334129K | |
| Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Steinitz Variation, Development Variation | 59,94160K | |
| Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Steinitz Variation, Exchange Variation | 53,55254K | |
| 15,02115K | ||
| 1,8381,838 | ||
| 1,5491,549 | ||
| 838838 | ||
| 721721 |
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: 6... a6 7. b3 Nbd7 8. Bb2 Be7 9. Be2 O-O 10. dxc5 Nxc5 11. Ne5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 53% under 1400, 52% at 2200 and up and 58% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 10K | |
| 1400–1799 | 45K | |
| 1800–2199 | 117K | |
| 2200 and up | 117K | |
| Masters, over the board | 8,467 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Mamedyarov, S.
- Kramnik, V. – Kasparov, G.
- Carlsen, M. – Caruana, F.
- So, W. – Caruana, F.
- Carlsen, M. – Aronian, L.
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
Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Normal Line (ECO D26, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a gambit in the Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Bxc4 c5 6. O-O (6 moves).
In 263,582 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.3%, Black 43.7% and 10.0% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 6…a6, in 49% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Main Line and Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Steinitz Variation, Development Variation. In all, 10 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 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Normal Line
The most played answer, 6…a6 (Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Main Line), also scores best for Black: 49.5%, with Black winning 44.2% and White 45.2% of 129K games. Of the main answers, 6…Be7 scores lowest: 47.5%. Stockfish's first choice is also 6…a6.
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 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Normal Line has gained ground since 2016: 0.011% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.0095%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0095% | 3,386 |
| 2017 | 0.011% | 6,198 |
| 2018 | 0.011% | 8,399 |
| 2019 | 0.01% | 12,655 |
| 2020 | 0.01% | 29,789 |
| 2021 | 0.0086% | 33,733 |
| 2022 | 0.0095% | 35,529 |
| 2023 | 0.01% | 38,077 |
| 2024 | 0.011% | 38,784 |
| 2025 | 0.011% | 39,649 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.011% | 12,526 |
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)
All 10 named lines that continue from here
- D27 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Main Line 6 moves
- D26 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Steinitz Variation, Development Variation 6 moves
- D26 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Steinitz Variation, Exchange Variation 6 moves
- D28 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Alekhine System 7 moves
- D27 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Rubinstein Variation 7 moves
- D27 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Furman Variation 7 moves
- D28 Alekhine System 7 moves
- D29 Main Line 8 moves
- D28 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical, Flohr Variation 13 moves
- D29 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Alekhine System, Smyslov Variation 10 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Normal Line (D26)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-accepted-classical-defense-normal-line