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Scheveningen Variation

Play through the 20 named Scheveningen lines and see the name and ECO code of each position.

What this scheveningen variation page does

The Scheveningen is a line of the Sicilian Defense, and this page is a free opening explorer that lists its named lines and plays each one on a board. It runs in your web browser, needs no sign-up, and uploads nothing. The catalogue holds 20 named lines of the Scheveningen variation, with ECO codes B80 to B85 and B90. Use the page to see how each line starts, step through the moves, and compare the White set-ups such as the Keres Attack and the English Attack. Every move on the board is checked by the chess.js library, so illegal moves cannot be played.

Scheveningen example

How to use the Scheveningen opening explorer

  1. The page opens on the main line with all its moves already played. Press ⏮ to go back to the start.
  2. Press ▶ to play the next move and ◀ to go back one move. Press ⏭ to jump to the last move.
  3. Press Auto-play to play one move about every 1.1 seconds. The button turns into Pause, so press it to stop.
  4. Read the line under the buttons. It shows the moves played so far and, when the catalogue knows the position, its name and ECO code.
  5. In the Lines list, find the row you want (each row shows the ECO code, the name and the moves) and click it to play that line.
  6. In Moves of the selected line, click any move to jump straight to that position.
  7. Press Flip board to see the position from Black's side.
  8. Click 'Practise this line in the opening trainer' to open the opening trainer on the same line.

The address bar keeps the line you chose (the ?l= part of the address), so you can bookmark it or send the link to someone and they will see the same line. The explorer shows named lines and positions only. It has no engine evaluation, win percentages, master games or statistics.

What is the Scheveningen Variation?

The Scheveningen Variation is a line of the Sicilian Defense in which Black places pawns on d6 and e6, forming what is called the small centre, and brings a knight to f6. Black's c-pawn is exchanged for White's d-pawn, and White's knight recaptures on d4.

The basic position in the catalogue is 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6. It is named 'Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation' and has the ECO code B80. The catalogue names a position by its pieces, not by the order of moves. So Black can reach the same set-up in different orders, for example with 2...d6 and 5...a6 first and then ...e6, and the name shown for that position still fits. Each step of a line in the explorer shows the name that matches the position at that point.

How is the Scheveningen different from other Sicilian lines?

What marks the Scheveningen is the pawn structure: Black puts pawns on d6 and e6 and develops the knight to f6. The Najdorf, another famous Sicilian line, is defined by the move 5...a6 after 5. Nc3, and the Dragon by ...g6; those lines are not part of this page. Some Scheveningen lines in the catalogue start with 2...d6 and play ...a6 and ...e6 later, such as the Delayed Keres Attack: 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 e6 7. g4 (B90). When you compare openings, look at the pawns on the board as well as the order of the moves.

Examples

♜8♞♝♛♚♝♜♟7♟♟♟♟6♟♟♞54♞♟3♞♟2♟♟♟♟♟♜1ab♝c♛d♚e♝fg♜h
Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation (ECO B80): 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6.
♜8♞♝♛♚♝♜♟7♟♟♟♟6♟♟♞54♞♟♟3♞♟2♟♟♟♟♜1ab♝c♛d♚e♝fg♜h
Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Keres Attack (ECO B81): 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. g4.
♜8♝♜♚7♟♛♝♟♟♟♟6♞♟♟♞54♞♟♟3♞♝♟2♟♟♝♟♟♜1abcd♛e♜f♚gh
Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Classical Main Line (ECO B85): 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be2 a6 7. O-O Nf6 8. Be3 Be7 9. f4 d6 10. Qe1 O-O.

Questions and answers

What are the moves of the Scheveningen?

The basic Scheveningen position is 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6. Other named lines continue from there, and the longest one in the catalogue has 20 half-moves. Open the Lines list on the page to see them all.

What is the Keres Attack against the Scheveningen?

The Keres Attack is White's 6. g4 after 5...d6. White pushes the g-pawn two squares and plans g5 against the knight on f6. The catalogue lists it under ECO code B81.

What is the English Attack?

The English Attack is a set of named lines in which White plays Be3 and then either Qd2 or f3, with Black's a6 and e6 already in place. The explorer lists these lines in the Lines panel, so you can click one to see its moves.

What ECO codes do the Scheveningen lines use?

The catalogue has 20 named lines of the Scheveningen, with ECO codes B80, B81, B82, B83, B84, B85 and B90. ECO stands for Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings, and the B codes cover semi-open games such as the Sicilian Defense.

Is the Scheveningen explorer free to use?

Yes. It runs in your web browser, is free, needs no sign-up, and does not upload anything you do.

Does the explorer show which Scheveningen line is best?

No. The page shows named lines and positions only. It has no engine evaluation, win percentages, master games or statistics, so it cannot tell you which line is stronger.

  • Chess opening trainer — use it to practise a Scheveningen line move by move until you know it.
  • Chess opening finder — use it to find the name of an opening from the moves you have already played.
  • ECO codes — use it to look up what a code such as B80 or B90 covers.
  • Random chess opening generator — use it when you want a random opening to explore instead of the Scheveningen.
  • Chess notation — use it to learn how moves such as Nxd4 and Be3 are written.
  • PGN viewer — use it to step through a game score that you have saved in PGN format.
  • Chess cheat sheet — use it for a quick reminder of piece moves and basic rules.
  • Chess puzzles — use it to test your tactics once you have studied the opening.

Open-source components used by this tool: chess.js (BSD-2-Clause); chess-openings catalogue (CC0-1.0).