English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry
17K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
Black expected score · All ratings · All speeds
48.3%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 48.9%.
Measured over 17K games at this level and clock.
Roughly even — the middlegame decides more than this opening choice does.
Outcomes for Black
Draw 7.0 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 17K games
- Rank among the families Black can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 17K
- Best context
- 49.9% at 1800-1999 Blitz
- Worst context
- 46.8% at 2200-2499 Blitz
- Average game length
- 39 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 93.0%
- Draws
- 7.0%
Best and worst are the strongest and weakest squares with at least 500 games behind them. The table further down shows every square, including thinner ones.
Where it holds · Black score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for Black, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It holds about the same all the way up, near 48.9%.
| Rating | UB | Bulle | Blitz | Rapid | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | — | — | |||
| 1000-1199 | — | — | |||
| 1200-1399 | |||||
| 1400-1599 | — | ||||
| 1600-1799 | — | ||||
| 1800-1999 | — | ||||
| 2000-2199 | — | ||||
| 2200-2499 | — | ||||
| 2500+ | — |
Expected score matrix by rating bracket and time control
- 0-999 rating, Bullet: 64.1% expected score (27 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 40.3% expected score (19 games)
- 0-999 rating, Rapid: 42.4% expected score (5 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 34.5% expected score (50 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 56.0% expected score (57 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 35.1% expected score (22 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, UltraBullet: 50.0% expected score (2 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 50.0% expected score (133 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 48.4% expected score (147 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 39.5% expected score (41 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 83.4% expected score (3 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 44.8% expected score (303 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 49.0% expected score (386 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 41.2% expected score (83 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 78.6% expected score (2 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 50.8% expected score (493 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 48.4% expected score (699 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 47.4% expected score (154 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (12 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 47.5% expected score (1,048 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 49.9% expected score (1,615 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 48.2% expected score (249 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 74.2% expected score (13 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 48.8% expected score (1,792 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 49.3% expected score (2,589 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 52.6% expected score (273 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 39.8% expected score (18 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 48.6% expected score (2,422 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 46.8% expected score (2,547 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 41.3% expected score (147 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 59.1% expected score (4 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 47.9% expected score (1,512 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 45.0% expected score (358 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 46.0% expected score (11 games)
- 2500+ rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (4 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry scores 48.3% for Black — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 47.7% and 48.9% — from 17K Lichess games. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
How the figures are made
- Whose games these are
- 17K+ rated games played on Lichess (2023-12 to 2025-11). The games are Lichess’s and free for anyone to use. What is ours is the reading of them. Last rebuilt January 2026.
- Which games we count
- Rated games only — nothing casual.
- Both players within 200 rating points of each other. A mismatch tells you about the gap, not about the opening.
- At least 2 moves played.
- A game is filed under White’s rating.
- Why every number comes with a range
- A number off a few hundred games is a guess. The same number off millions is a fact. The range is what tells them apart, and it is what the lists rank on — so an opening cannot reach the top on a lucky run of forty games. The more games behind a figure, the narrower its range.
- How much we need before we say anything
- An opening page needs 100 games. A gambit needs 50 games at a rating before we will say whether it pays there. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games overall and 250 games at one rating or clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate?
Playing the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry, Black wins 44.8%, draws 7.0% and loses 48.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.3%. It rests on 17K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry perform best?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry performs best for Black at 2000-2199, with an Expected Score of 49.2% (4.7K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry better in blitz or rapid?
For Black, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry scores higher in Blitz: an Expected Score of 48.4% in Blitz (8.4K games) against 46.9% in Rapid (985 games).
How sharp is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry has a sharpness score of 93.0 (decisive), meaning 93.0% of games end decisively. Average game length is 39 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 1000-1199?
At 1000-1199, Black wins 41.8%, draws 4.2% and loses 54.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 43.9%. It rests on 129 Lichess games, which average 32 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, Black wins 46.0%, draws 4.7% and loses 49.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.4%. It rests on 326 Lichess games, which average 33 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, Black wins 45.7%, draws 1.7% and loses 52.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 46.6%. It rests on 774 Lichess games, which average 33 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, Black wins 46.8%, draws 4.7% and loses 48.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.2%. It rests on 1.4K Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, Black wins 47.0%, draws 4.0% and loses 49.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.0%. It rests on 2.9K Lichess games, which average 37 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, Black wins 46.7%, draws 5.0% and loses 48.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.2%. It rests on 4.7K Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, Black wins 44.3%, draws 6.4% and loses 49.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.5%. It rests on 5.1K Lichess games, which average 40 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, Black wins 36.0%, draws 22.6% and loses 41.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.3%. It rests on 1.9K Lichess games, which average 46 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, Black wins 44.7%, draws 7.2% and loses 48.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.3%. It rests on 7.8K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, Black wins 45.1%, draws 6.6% and loses 48.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.4%. It rests on 8.4K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, Black wins 43.1%, draws 7.5% and loses 49.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 46.9%. It rests on 985 Lichess games.
Is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry a good opening?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Closed System, Full Symmetry is hard work for Black — it favours White. Across all ratings, Black wins 44.8% of its games and loses 48.2%. It performs best at 2000-2199. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.