Nimzowitsch Defense (1… Nc6 2. d4)
1. e4 Nc6 2. d4
The Nimzowitsch Defense is a chess opening classified as ECO B00, reached after 1. e4 Nc6 2. d4. Black is to move. 5 named lines continue from this position.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 32,698 times by this move order. White won 49%, 4% were drawn and Black won 47%. The most popular continuation is 2… e5 (38% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.25 (Stockfish, depth 48; best line 2… d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. c3 e6 5. Bd3)
- ECO
- B00
- Moves
- 3 plies
- FEN
r1bqkbnr/pppppppp/2n5/8/3PP3/8/PPP2PPP/RNBQKBNR b KQkq - 0 2- PGN
1. e4 Nc6 2. d4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 10,625 | |
| 1500-1999 | 16,320 | |
| 2000+ | 5,753 | |
| All | 32,698 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 2… e5 Kennedy Variation | 12,336 (38%) | |
| 2… d5 Scandinavian Variation | 10,869 (33%) | |
| 2… e6 | 4,056 (12%) | |
| 2… d6 Mikenas Variation | 1,938 (6%) | |
| 2… Nf6 | 1,612 (5%) | |
| 2… b6 | 520 (2%) | |
| 2… g6 | 419 (1%) | |
| 2… f5 | 221 (1%) |
Master games
113 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 60%, draw 10%, Black 30%). The strongest:
- GM Maxime Lagarde (2615) – GM Christian Bauer (2644) 1/2-1/2 · 5th ch-Francophonie Blitz · 2018-07-13
- IM Abdulla Gadimbayli (2470) – GM Boris Savchenko (2552) 1-0 · Titled Arena Jan 2nd 2021 · 2021-01-02
- GM Sveshnikov, E. (2483) – GM Georg Mohr (2445) 1/2-1/2 · Maribor-RUS Friendly · 2019-06-21
- GM Pouria Darini (2432) – Amirreza Pour Agha Bala (2432) 1-0 · ch-IRI Online 2021 · 2021-03-17
- FM Leo Valle Luis (2354) – IM Mihnea Costachi (2476) 0-1 · Titled Tue 9th May Early · 2023-05-09
Search all games of the Nimzowitsch Defense and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- ChessWarrior_222 (2824) – Rookz77 (2660) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- T-80BVM (2666) – IM Jamorris94 (2786) 1-0 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
- FM dclasby (2779) – kasparik_garik (2618) 1-0 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Nimzowitsch Defense (1. e4 Nc6) 1. e4 Nc6
Continuations
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Kennedy Variation B00 · 1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 e5
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Mikenas Variation B00 · 1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 d6
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Neo-Mongoloid Defense B00 · 1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 f6
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Scandinavian Variation B00 · 1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 d5
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Woodchuck Variation B00 · 1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 a6
More Nimzowitsch Defense lines (all)
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Breyer Variation B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Colorado Countergambit B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Colorado Countergambit Accepted B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Declined Variation B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: El Columpio Defense B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: El Columpio Defense, El Columpio Gambit B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: El Columpio Defense, Exchange Variation B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: El Columpio Defense, Pin Variation B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Franco-Nimzowitsch Variation B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: French Connection B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Hornung Gambit B00
- Nimzowitsch Defense: Kennedy Variation, Bielefelder Gambit B00
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.