Petrov's Defense: Italian Variation
Chess opening · ECO C42 · 5 half-moves
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bc4
The Petrov's Defense: Italian Variation is reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bc4. It is Black's move in the position shown.
It branches from the Petrov's Defense with 3. Bc4.
How often it is played
The Petrov's Defense: Italian Variation and its variations appeared in 0.27% of games — 8,226 of 3,000,000 rated games sampled from Lichess in September 2026. That makes it number 146 of the openings listed here.
Results
White won 51%, 3.2% 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 -0.59 — a small edge for Black. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Petrov's Defense: Three Knights Game | 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 | 0.34% |
| King's Knight Opening: Normal Variation | 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 | 10% |
| Philidor Defense | 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 | 2.1% |
Main continuations
| Variation | Moves | Share of games |
|---|---|---|
| Bishop's Opening: Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit | 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bc4 Nxe4 4. Nc3 | 0.01% |
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