- ECO code
- D25
- Moves
- 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3
- Family
- Queen's Gambit Accepted
- To move
- Black
- Master games
- 435
- Average game length
- 40 moves
- Years covered
- 1890–2026
Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation is the opening filed under ECO code D25, reached after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3. It belongs to the Queen's Gambit Accepted family and is known as the Normal Variation; in the resulting position it is Black to move.
Katuranga's collection of 138,070 master games contains 435 games on this line — the 236th most played opening in the collection. The oldest game on this line is from 1890 and the most recent from 2026. The busiest decade in this collection is the 2020s, with 175 games. An average game here lasts 40 moves.
White wins 26% of those games, 54% end in a draw, and Black wins 20%. Compared with the collection average (White 37%, draws 35%, Black 28%), Black scores worse here by 8 percentage points. Draws are more common here than usual, by 19 points.
From this position the most popular move is 4...e6, played in 320 games, followed by 4...Bg4 (52) and 4...c5 (23). 4...e6 leads into Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation, Traditional System. After 4...e6 White scores 27% and Black 17%.
The name that appears most often on the White side of this line is Mamedyarov,S (23 games); on the Black side, Karjakin,Sergey (20).
1 named variation branch off this position and have their own page here, among them Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation, Traditional System.
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Results in master games
- White 26% (113)
- Draws 54% (234)
- Black 20% (88)
Most played continuations
| Move | Games | White / draws / Black | Leads into |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4...e6 | 320 | 27/56/17 | Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation, Traditional System |
| 4...Bg4 | 52 | 25/52/23 | — |
| 4...c5 | 23 | 13/65/22 | — |
| 4...a6 | 18 | 28/22/50 | — |
| 4...g6 | 12 | 17/33/50 | — |
| 4...Be6 | 6 | 17/83/0 | — |
| 4...b5 | 4 | 50/25/25 | — |
Variations from this position
- Traditional System · 4...e6 · 320 games
How the position is reached
- Queen's Pawn Game · 1.d4 · 45,810 games
- Queen's Pawn Game · 1.d4 d5 · 11,560 games
- Queen's Gambit · 1.d4 d5 2.c4 · 8,858 games
- Queen's Gambit Accepted · 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 · 1,226 games
- Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation · 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 · 662 games
- Queen's Gambit Accepted · 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 · 488 games
Played most often by
As White
- Mamedyarov,S 23
- Spassky, Boris V 19
- Ding Liren 17
As Black
- Karjakin,Sergey 20
- Petrosian, Tigran V 19
- Aronian,L 16
Games per decade
- 1890s 2
- 1900s 2
- 1930s 16
- 1940s 3
- 1950s 24
- 1960s 56
- 1970s 24
- 1980s 15
- 1990s 30
- 2000s 57
- 2010s 31
- 2020s 175
Master games on this line
| White | Black | Result | Year | Events |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xi,Qi | Mamedyarov,S | 0-1 | 2026 | FIDE World Bl Team Pool D |
| Yu Yangyi | So,W | 1-0 | 2026 | Chess.com Open PlayIn2 KO |
| Firouzja,Alireza | Nakamura,Hi | 1/2-1/2 | 2026 | SpeedChess Final 2025 |
| Anand,V | Ibarra Jerez,JC | 1-0 | 2026 | FIDE World Bl Team Pool A |
| Suleymanli,Aydin | Mamedyarov,S | 0-1 | 2026 | FIDE World Bl Team Pool D |
| Ibrahimli,Murad | Mamedyarov,S | 1/2-1/2 | 2026 | 80th ch-AZE 2026 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation?
It is the opening with ECO code D25, reached after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3. It belongs to the Queen's Gambit Accepted family.
Is the Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation good for White or for Black?
In 435 master games on this line White wins 26%, 54% are drawn and Black wins 20%. The collection average is White 37%, draws 35%, Black 28% — so this line is no worse than usual for White than the field as a whole.
What is the main continuation of the Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation?
4...e6 — played in 320 of the master games on this line, which leads into Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation, Traditional System.
Which grandmasters play the Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation?
On the White side Mamedyarov,S (23), Spassky, Boris V (19), Ding Liren (17); on the Black side Karjakin,Sergey (20), Petrosian, Tigran V (19), Aronian,L (16).
Every number on this page is computed from Katuranga's master game collection; names and ECO codes follow the lichess opening book (CC0).
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