Benko Gambit Accepted
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6
The Benko Gambit Accepted is a chess opening classified as ECO A57, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6. White is to move. 5 named lines continue from this position.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 4,655 times by this move order. White won 46%, 6% were drawn and Black won 48%. The most popular continuation is 5. bxa6 (47% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.60 (Stockfish, depth 69; best line 5. bxa6 e6 6. Nc3 exd5 7. Nxd5 Be7)
- ECO
- A57
- Moves
- 8 plies
- FEN
rnbqkb1r/3ppppp/p4n2/1PpP4/8/8/PP2PPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 5- PGN
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 34 | |
| 1500-1999 | 1,395 | |
| 2000+ | 3,226 | |
| All | 4,655 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 5. bxa6 Fully Accepted Variation | 2,183 (47%) | |
| 5. Nc3 Zaitsev System | 875 (19%) | |
| 5. e3 Modern Variation | 785 (17%) | |
| 5. b6 Pawn Return Variation | 651 (14%) | |
| 5. f3 Dlugy Variation | 113 (2%) | |
| 5. Nf3 | 11 (0%) | |
| 5. g3 | 7 (0%) | |
| 5. e4 | 7 (0%) |
Master games
39 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 38%, draw 13%, Black 49%). The strongest:
- GM Nihal Sarin (2704) – GM Hovhannes Gabuzyan (2553) 0-1 · Asrian Mem Rapid 2025 · 2025-11-27
- FM Alexandre Pigeat (2309) – GM Roman Ovetchkin (2507) 0-1 · Titled Tue 1st Oct Early · 2024-10-01
- FM Aleksa Petrovic (2332) – FM Alberto Martin Fuentes (2388) 1-0 · Titled Tue 16th May Late · 2023-05-16
- IM Haridas Pascua (2446) – IM Daniel Quizon (2268) 1/2-1/2 · 9th HD Bank Cup 2019 · 2019-03-11
- GM Nikita Matinian (2435) – WGM Altan-Ulzii Enkhtuul (2267) 1-0 · Titled Tue 23rd Aug Early · 2022-08-23
Search all games of the Benko Gambit Accepted and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- NM Andrey11976 (2797) – Nana_jede_cevape (2886) 1-0 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
- ScaryIndianJunior (2805) – tsunami10 (2798) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- elconceto (2837) – reallylovezerk (2729) 1-0 · 2026-09-02 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Benko Gambit (3. d5 b5) 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5
Continuations
- Benko Gambit Accepted: Dlugy Variation A57 · 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. f3
- Benko Gambit Accepted: Fully Accepted Variation A58 · 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6
- Benko Gambit Accepted: Modern Variation A57 · 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. e3
- Benko Gambit Accepted: Pawn Return Variation A57 · 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. b6
- Benko Gambit: Zaitsev System A57 · 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. Nc3
More Benko Gambit Accepted lines (all)
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.