Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Modern Variation (1. b3 e5)
1. b3 e5
The Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Modern Variation is a chess opening classified as ECO A01, reached after 1. b3 e5. It is a line of the Nimzo-Larsen Attack. 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 43,362 times by this move order. White won 50%, 4% were drawn and Black won 46%. The most popular continuation is 2. Bb2 (92% of games).
Engine evaluation: 0.00 (Stockfish, depth 50; best line 2. Bb2 Nc6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 e4)
- ECO
- A01
- Moves
- 2 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pppp1ppp/8/4p3/8/1P6/P1PPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 2- PGN
1. b3 e5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 18,522 | |
| 1500-1999 | 20,394 | |
| 2000+ | 4,446 | |
| All | 43,362 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 2. Bb2 | 39,740 (92%) | |
| 2. g3 | 692 (2%) | |
| 2. e3 | 664 (2%) | |
| 2. Ba3 | 497 (1%) | |
| 2. e4 | 413 (1%) | |
| 2. c4 | 291 (1%) | |
| 2. d3 | 234 (1%) | |
| 2. Nc3 | 148 (0%) |
Master games
2,023 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 48%, draw 15%, Black 37%). The strongest:
- Obsidiandev-16.14 (3645) – Stockfishdev-20250802-a37b38bd (3731) 1/2-1/2 · TCEC 28 Premier 2025 · 2025-08-03
- Stockfishdev-20250802-a37b38bd (3731) – Obsidiandev-16.14 (3645) 1-0 · TCEC 28 Premier 2025 · 2025-08-03
- GM Hikaru Nakamura (2786) – GM Magnus Carlsen (2832) 1/2-1/2 · chess.com Speed 3m+2spm 2017 · 2018-01-03
- GM Magnus Carlsen (2831) – GM Alireza Firouzja (2763) 0-1 · Titled Tue 12th Nov Early · 2024-11-12
- GM Hikaru Nakamura (2802) – GM Alireza Firouzja (2763) 1-0 · Titled Tue 19th Nov Early · 2024-11-19
Search all games of the Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Modern Variation and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- KnightCheckShadow (3001) – spartak20 (2720) 1-0 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
- GM athena-pallada (2938) – josedavid321 (2645) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- GM athena-pallada (2897) – Skarr_song (2681) 0-1 · 2026-09-03 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Nimzo-Larsen Attack 1. b3
Continuations
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Modern Variation (2. Bb2 Nc6) A01 · 1. b3 e5 2. Bb2 Nc6
More Nimzo-Larsen Attack lines (all)
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Classical Variation (1. b3 d5) A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Dutch Variation A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: English Variation A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Graz Attack A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Indian Variation A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Modern Variation (2… Nc6 3. e3) A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Modern Variation (3. c4 Nf6) A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Pachman Gambit A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Polish Variation A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Ringelbach Gambit A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Spike Variation A01
- Nimzo-Larsen Attack: Symmetrical Variation A01
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.