Montevideo Defense
1. d4 Nc6 2. d5 Nb8
The Montevideo Defense is a chess opening classified as ECO A40, reached after 1. d4 Nc6 2. d5 Nb8. White is to move. 1 named line continues from this position.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 485 times by this move order. White won 53%, 4% were drawn and Black won 43%. The most popular continuation is 3. e4 (49% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.72 (Stockfish, depth 52; best line 3. e4 e6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Qe2 Bb4)
- ECO
- A40
- Moves
- 4 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/3P4/8/8/PPP1PPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 1 3- PGN
1. d4 Nc6 2. d5 Nb8
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 205 | |
| 1500-1999 | 207 | |
| 2000+ | 73 | |
| All | 485 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 3. e4 | 238 (49%) | |
| 3. c4 | 161 (33%) | |
| 3. Nf3 | 28 (6%) | |
| 3. Nc3 | 22 (5%) | |
| 3. Bf4 | 12 (2%) | |
| 3. f4 | 6 (1%) | |
| 3. d6 | 3 (1%) | |
| 3. Bg5 | 3 (1%) |
Master games
53 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 49%, draw 13%, Black 38%). The strongest:
- GM Wojciech Moranda (2593) – GM Pawel Jaracz (2465) 1-0 · Adolf Anderssen Mem Final · 2017-12-03
- GM Aleksey Goganov (2501) – Azamat Utegaliyev (2474) 1-0 · Qonaev Cup Masters 2025 · 2025-08-10
- IM Pier Luigi Basso (2417) – GM Michele Godena (2519) 0-1 · 76th ch-ITA Rapid TB 2016 · 2016-12-18
- FM Eduard Ashiev (2202) – GM Daniil Dubov (2720) 0-1 · Titled Tue 1st Mar Late · 2022-03-01
- FM Borna Derakhshani (2348) – GM Iuri Shkuro (2566) 1/2-1/2 · Northumbria Masters Open · 2024-08-24
Search all games of the Montevideo Defense and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Tornado_M (2707) – SluchaynazPOBEDA (2571) 1-0 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- Tornado_M (2693) – SluchaynazPOBEDA (2585) 1-0 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- FM labestia2017 (2594) – blindcrocodile (2581) 1-0 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Mikenas Defense 1. d4 Nc6
Continuations
- Zaire Defense A40 · 1. d4 Nc6 2. d5 Nb8 3. e4 Nf6 4. e5 Ng8
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.