English Opening: Symmetrical Variation
Chess opening · ECO A30 · 2 half-moves
1. c4 c5
The English Opening: Symmetrical Variation is reached after 1. c4 c5. It is White's move in the position shown.
It branches from the English Opening with 1… c5.
How often it is played
The English Opening: Symmetrical Variation and its variations appeared in 0.36% of games — 10,823 of 3,000,000 rated games sampled from Lichess in September 2026. That makes it number 118 of the openings listed here.
Results
White won 51%, 4.2% were drawn and Black won 45%. These are games between players of every strength and time control, so they say how the opening does in practice rather than how sound it is.
What the engine thinks
Stockfish, at depth 18, evaluates the position at +0.34 — a small edge for White. Positive numbers favour White; see reading the evaluation bar.
Similar openings
The most-played alternatives — what else could have been chosen around the move where this opening begins.
| Opening | Moves | Share of games |
|---|---|---|
| English Opening: King's English Variation | 1. c4 e5 | 0.87% |
| English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense | 1. c4 Nf6 | 0.46% |
| English Opening: Agincourt Defense | 1. c4 e6 | 0.38% |
Main continuations
| Variation | Moves | Share of games |
|---|---|---|
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Normal Variation | 1. c4 c5 2. Nc3 | 0.17% |
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Four Knights Variation | 1. c4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 Nc6 | 0.01% |
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Ultra-Symmetrical Variation | 1. c4 c5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. Nc3 Nc6 | 0.01% |
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Botvinnik System | 1. c4 c5 2. e4 Nc6 3. Nc3 g6 4. g3 Bg7 5. Bg2 | 0.01% |
| English Opening: Wing Gambit | 1. c4 c5 2. b4 | 0.00% |
Check your own games
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