Queen's Pawn Game: Veresov Attack, Dutch System
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Statistics from Lichess
177,244 games: White 48.6% / Draw 5.2% / Black 46.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 76,40176K | ||
| 26,03226K | ||
| 23,39123K | ||
| 16,41316K | ||
| Dutch Defense: Kingfisher Gambit | 10,39310K | |
| 6,7166,716 | ||
| 6,0466,046 | ||
| 3,5613,561 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.40 White is slightly better
Best play: 3. Bf4 a6 4. e3 Nf6 5. Nf3 e6 6. Bd3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 47% under 1400, 46% at 2200 and up and 43% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 95K | |
| 1400–1799 | 76K | |
| 1800–2199 | 98K | |
| 2200 and up | 38K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,322 |
Master games
- Gelfand, B. – Nakamura, H.
- Gelfand, B. – Nakamura, H.
- Grischuk, A. – Nakamura, H.
- Ponomariov, R. – Nakamura, H.
- Shimanov, A. – Carlsen, M.
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 Pawn Game: Veresov Attack, Dutch System (ECO A80, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Dutch Defense: Raphael Variation, reached after 1. d4 f5 2. Nc3 d5 (2 moves).
In 177,244 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.6%, Black 46.2% and 5.2% were drawn. White's most played move here is 3. Bf4, in 43% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Dutch Defense: Kingfisher Gambit.
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 Pawn Game: Veresov Attack, Dutch System
3. e4 (Dutch Defense: Kingfisher Gambit) scores best for White: 55.7%, with White winning 53.2% and Black 41.7% of 10K games. The most played, 3. Bf4, scores 51.1% in 76K games, and 3. Nf3 scores lowest: 47.8%. Stockfish's first choice is 3. Bf4.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White'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 Pawn Game: Veresov Attack, Dutch System dipped to 0.0058% of Lichess games in 2021 and has recovered since: 0.0082% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0079% | 2,806 |
| 2017 | 0.0071% | 3,881 |
| 2018 | 0.0066% | 5,145 |
| 2019 | 0.0065% | 8,065 |
| 2020 | 0.0066% | 19,312 |
| 2021 | 0.0058% | 22,690 |
| 2022 | 0.0062% | 23,252 |
| 2023 | 0.0064% | 24,227 |
| 2024 | 0.0075% | 26,732 |
| 2025 | 0.0082% | 28,482 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0083% | 9,140 |
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 (1)
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Pawn Game: Veresov Attack, Dutch System (A80)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-pawn-game-veresov-attack-dutch-system