Vienna Game win rate

White scored 53.3% (margin 0.6 points) in 22,706 rated games of the Vienna Game, ECO C25, played between players within 100 rating points on 1 September 2026. It ranked number 20 of 117 openings by popularity and made up 1.4% of all games.

51.4%

44.8%

White wins 51.4%
Draws 3.8%
Black wins 44.8%

22,706 games

How often does White win in the Vienna Game?

White won 51.4% of the 22,706 games, 3.7% were drawn and Black won 44.8%. White's score of 53.3% is higher than White's score across all openings (51.9%) by 1.4 points, more than the margin of 0.6 points.

Results of 22,706 games of the Vienna Game, 1 September 2026.
Result	Games	Share
White wins	11,678	51.4%
Draws	848	3.7%
Black wins	10,180	44.8%

Does the Vienna Game score differently at different ratings?

White's score is highest at 1200 to 1599 (53.6%) and lowest at under 1200 (52.9%). That spread of 0.7 points is inside the two margins added together, so the data show no clear difference between the bands.

Players rated under 1200 choose the Vienna Game most often relative to their other openings, in 1.8 percent of their games.

White's score in the Vienna Game by the lower rating of the two players, 1 September 2026.
Rating band	Games	Share of the band	White score	Margin (points)
under 1200	4,952	1.8%	52.9%	1.4
1200 to 1599	9,454	1.6%	53.6%	1.0
1600 to 1999	7,293	1.2%	53.3%	1.1

How does the Vienna Game do in blitz, rapid and classical?

The time control changes who tends to win, because the clock matters more in faster games. Rows with fewer than 1,500 games are left out.

White's score in the Vienna Game by time control, 1 September 2026.
Time control	Games	White score	Margin (points)
Blitz	16,119	52.8%	0.8
Rapid	6,376	54.4%	1.2

What are the most played lines of the Vienna Game?

The most played named line is the Max Lange Defense, with 3,518 games and a White score of 51.2%. The table lists the ten most played lines that reached 300 games; a line below that is counted in the last row.

Named lines of the Vienna Game, most played first, 1 September 2026.
Line	Games	White score	Margin (points)
Max Lange Defense	3,518	51.2%	1.6
Vienna Gambit	2,720	59.5%	1.8
Anderssen Defense	2,494	52.3%	1.9
Stanley Variation	1,845	51.8%	2.2
Falkbeer Variation	1,275	51.1%	2.7
Stanley Variation, Three Knights Variation	800	52.8%	3.4
Stanley Variation, Reversed Spanish	663	50.7%	3.7
Omaha Gambit	450	53.4%	4.5
Vienna Gambit, Main Line	361	47.9%	5.1
Paulsen Variation	331	59.2%	5.2
Main line and less played lines	8,249	53.4%	1.1

How were these opening statistics measured?

Rated Blitz, Rapid and Classical games on 1 September 2026 between players within 100 rating points, banded by the lower rating. A score is wins plus half the draws, with a 95 percent margin. The hub page explains the method in full.

Frequently asked questions

What is the win rate of the Vienna Game?

White won 51.4%, drew 3.7% and lost 44.8% of 22,706 games, a White score of 53.3% with a margin of 0.6 points. These are games on Lichess on 1 September 2026.

Is the Vienna Game good for White?

At these ratings White's score was higher than White's score across all openings (51.9%) by 1.4 points, more than the margin of 0.6 points. A difference of a point or two is small, and the side that picks an opening also picks which games reach it, so the number describes what happened at these ratings and is not a ruling on the opening.

What is the most popular line of the Vienna Game?

The Max Lange Defense was the most played named line, with 3,518 games, which is 15.5% of the games of the Vienna Game.

Sources

Lichess open database, standard rated games (CC0), file for September 2026, read 2026-10-22

Related guides and tools

Last updated 2026-10-22.

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