Flank openings

English Opening

1.c4

The English Opening starts with 1.c4 and is catalogued under ECO A10, in the flank openings half of the book. The catalog indexes 175 lines inside it, grouped into 127 named variations, and the position after those moves has 7 playable continuations to walk from here.

Opening repertoire map

Root edges show how often each move is played around your Elo. Use the arrow on a position to reveal the next replies.

Current position
English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, King's Knight Variation
4 plies
Anglo-Indian Defense, Queen's Indian Formation
Popularity by Elo
Share of Lichess blitz, rapid, and classical games that continued with each move.
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Current setup

Move ideas

  1. 1.c4

    Controls d5 from the flank without occupying the center immediately.

    Idea: Pressure the center from the side and keep the pawn structure flexible.

  2. 1…Nf6

    Develops the knight to f6, bringing it into the game.

    Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.

  3. 2.Nf3

    Develops the knight to f3, bringing it into the game.

    Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.

Book continuations

Waiting for Lichess game popularity.

7 moves
g6English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, King's Indian Formation6 named lines · English Orangutan · English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Slav FormationAdvances the g-pawn to gain kingside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.c5English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, King's Knight Variation2 named lines · English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Mecking Variation · English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Full Symmetry LineAdvances the c-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.d5English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense2 named lines · English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, Exchange VariationAdvances to d5 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.b6English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Queen's Indian Formation1 named lineAdvances the b-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.c6English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, King's Knight Variation1 named line · Réti Opening: Anglo-Slav Variation, Capablanca VariationAdvances the c-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.d6English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Old Indian Formation1 named lineAdvances to d6 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.e6English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, King's Knight Variation1 named line · English Opening: Romanishin GambitAdvances to e6 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

Named variations

Each line below is an indexed entry under English Opening. Open one to load it on the board and keep exploring from that position.

103 more named lines sit inside this family — the tree above walks all of them.

Openings from the same volume

ECO groups openings by the structures they lead to, so these families tend to share plans with the English Opening.