Queen's Pawn Game
Overview
Queen's Pawn Game is a top-level opening within the Flank Openings family, catalogued as ECO A40 — a starting point from which dozens of named sub-variations branch out.
The Flank Openings group covers flank openings — systems that delay the central pawn break and instead develop pieces and pawns on the wings.
It begins with 1 ply and takes 1. d4 to reach the canonical position.
The line has 14 documented children — Australian Defense, Benoni Defense: Old Benoni, Borg Defense: Borg Gambit, and others being widely played.
Across every depth of the tree this branch holds 318 documented sub-variations, reflecting decades of analytical work.
Explore the position on the interactive board, study its real-world results from Lichess, and challenge the engine when you are ready.
- ECO code
- A40
- Group
- Flank Openings (A)
- Plies
- 1
- Direct variations
- 14
- Total in subtree
- 318
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
691,646,651 games · White 49.9% / Draw 5.1% / Black 44.9%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| d5 | 275,649,989 | |
| Nf6 | 181,897,671 | |
| e6 | 62,997,108 | |
| g6 | 31,045,946 | |
| e5 | 29,703,437 | |
| c5 | 27,109,599 | |
| c6 | 23,681,391 | |
| d6 | 23,399,623 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 00:48:48
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Variations (14)
- A40 Australian Defense
- A43 Benoni Defense: Old Benoni
- A40 Borg Defense: Borg Gambit
- A80 Dutch Defense
- A40 English Defense
- A40 Englund Gambit
- A40 Horwitz Defense
- A45 Indian Defense
- A40 Mikenas Defense
- A40 Polish Defense
- A41 Queen's Pawn Game
- A40 Anglo-Slav Opening
- A40 Modern Defense
- A40 Slav Indian: Kudischewitsch Gambit
Show all 318 sub-variations (full subtree)
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