English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5
10K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
Black expected score · All ratings · All speeds
47.0%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 47.8%.
Measured over 10K games at this level and clock.
Black comes out behind here — there are better weapons in the list.
Outcomes for Black
Draw 10.0 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 10K games
- Rank among the families Black can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 10K
- Best context
- 49.4% at 1800-1999 Blitz
- Worst context
- 45.8% at 2200-2499 Blitz
- Average game length
- 35 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 90.0%
- Draws
- 10.0%
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: 40.4% expected score (71 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 44.2% expected score (109 games)
- 0-999 rating, Rapid: 62.0% expected score (36 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 38.8% expected score (159 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 40.8% expected score (345 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 47.5% expected score (156 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (2 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 40.9% expected score (262 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 48.2% expected score (673 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 42.7% expected score (345 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 37.0% expected score (10 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 48.1% expected score (261 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 48.2% expected score (801 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 45.0% expected score (494 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 48.6% expected score (34 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 48.0% expected score (288 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 46.1% expected score (849 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 48.8% expected score (557 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 40.8% expected score (42 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 45.8% expected score (284 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 49.4% expected score (768 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 45.6% expected score (397 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 37.7% expected score (47 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 54.2% expected score (374 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 49.1% expected score (774 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 53.2% expected score (270 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 56.5% expected score (14 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 45.0% expected score (350 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 45.8% expected score (608 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 44.4% expected score (141 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 30.0% expected score (6 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 47.7% expected score (405 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 48.3% expected score (352 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 45.6% expected score (55 games)
- 2500+ rating, Classical: 51.6% expected score (31 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 scores 47.0% for Black — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 46.2% and 47.8% — from 10K 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
- 10K+ 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, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate?
Playing the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5, Black wins 42.0%, draws 10.0% and loses 48.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.0%. It rests on 10K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 perform best?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 performs best for Black at 2000-2199, with an Expected Score of 51.3% (1.4K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 better in blitz or rapid?
For Black, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 scores about the same in both: an Expected Score of 47.3% in Blitz (5.3K games) against 46.9% in Rapid (2.5K games).
How sharp is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 has a sharpness score of 90.0 (decisive), meaning 90.0% of games end decisively. Average game length is 35 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 0-999?
At 0-999, Black wins 44.4%, draws 3.0% and loses 52.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 45.9%. It rests on 216 Lichess games, which average 26 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 1000-1199?
At 1000-1199, Black wins 40.2%, draws 3.4% and loses 56.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 41.9%. It rests on 662 Lichess games, which average 28 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, Black wins 43.6%, draws 3.1% and loses 53.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 45.2%. It rests on 1.3K Lichess games, which average 29 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, Black wins 45.0%, draws 4.2% and loses 50.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.2%. It rests on 1.6K Lichess games, which average 32 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, Black wins 45.0%, draws 4.3% and loses 50.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.2%. It rests on 1.7K Lichess games, which average 32 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, Black wins 44.8%, draws 5.1% and loses 50.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.4%. It rests on 1.5K Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, Black wins 47.0%, draws 8.5% and loses 44.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 51.3%. It rests on 1.4K Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, Black wins 40.3%, draws 10.0% and loses 49.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 45.3%. It rests on 1.1K Lichess games, which average 43 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, Black wins 17.5%, draws 60.9% and loses 21.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.0%. It rests on 843 Lichess games, which average 53 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, Black wins 39.8%, draws 13.6% and loses 46.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 46.6%. It rests on 2.5K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, Black wins 42.6%, draws 9.4% and loses 48.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.3%. It rests on 5.3K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, Black wins 43.5%, draws 6.8% and loses 49.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 46.9%. It rests on 2.5K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 win rate in Classical?
In Classical, Black wins 33.3%, draws 20.5% and loses 46.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 43.6%. It rests on 186 Lichess games.
Is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 a good opening?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with Bc5 is hard work for Black — it favours White. Across all ratings, Black wins 42.0% of its games and loses 48.0%. It performs best at 2000-2199. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.