What do top players play in the London?

In Chess.com blitz, the top 50 players go into the Nf3-first move order in 55% of 2,395 games. Here the Nf3-first move order means 2.Nf3 and then Bf4 on move 3, whatever Black played on move 1. The rest: the Jobava London 29%, the direct 2.Bf4 13%, other systems 3%.

What is the second most common system in the London?

The next most played system is the Jobava London, in 29% of games. Here that means 2.Nc3 and then Bf4 on move 3, whatever Black played on move 1. Next: the direct 2.Bf4 at 13%.

What does Magnus Carlsen play in the London?

In 60 blitz games as White in the London System, Black's most common first moves were 1…Nf6 (40 games), 1…d5 (18 games). Magnus Carlsen's main choice was the Jobava London, 29 games (48%); then the direct 2.Bf4, 25 games (42%).

What do top players play after 1…Nf6?

In the 1,431 games that reached 1…Nf6 (1.d4 Nf6), the most common second move is 2.Nf3 (769 games, 54%), followed by 2.Nc3 Jobava London (469 games, 33%).

Does a high score mean the opening is good?

Not by itself. Scores also reflect the rating gap between the top players and their opponents. Compare lines by how often the top players choose them, and use the scores as context.

Top players

London System · Chess.com blitz · updated 30 Oct 2026

How top-50 Chess.com blitz players play the London System

2,395 blitz games where a top-50 Chess.com player had White and played the London System: 1.d4 with Bf4 on move 2 or 3, before any c4 or Bg5. See which move order each player chooses, what they play after 1…Nf6 and how it scores. 47 of the top 50 play it.

London games

2,395

Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4)

55%

most played system

Top players' score

71%

vs ~3,000 avg opponents

Key findings

47 of the top 50 play the London as White. Vincent Keymer, Matthias Bluebaum and Manu David have no games in it. Faustino Oro, Aleksei Sarana, Rudik Makarian and 7 others have fewer than 10 games in it.
Most games go into the Nf3-first move order. 55% of 2,395 games are Nf3-first lines. The chart below breaks the rest down by system.
Tuan Minh Le, Artin Ashraf and Maxim Matlakov vary the most. After 1.d4, each has played 3 different first moves at least 5 times.
Jan-Krzysztof Duda scores best in the London. Jan-Krzysztof Duda scores 82% over 94 games, the highest among players with 50 or more games in the London.
After 1…Nf6, 2.Nf3 leads. It was played in 769 of the 1431 games after 1…Nf6 (54%), ahead of 2.Nc3 Jobava London (469 games, 33%).

Which move order White chooses into the London

Share of each player's games in the London. Tap or hover a segment for the count and the score.

Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4)
Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4)
Direct (2.Bf4)
Other systems

All 47 players with games

Nodirbek Abdusattorov

Faded rows: fewer than 20 games.

Table view

Each cell: games · share of the player's games · score
Player	Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4)	Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4)	Direct (2.Bf4)	Other systems
All 47 players with games	1,329 · 55% · 72%	684 · 29% · 70%	316 · 13% · 70%	66 · 3% · 70%
Hikaru Nakamura	–	–	8 · 62% · 94%	5 · 38% · 100%
Magnus Carlsen	–	29 · 48% · 72%	25 · 42% · 84%	6 · 10% · 92%
Denis Lazavik	7 · 28% · 71%	16 · 64% · 84%	–	2 · 8% · 100%
Ediz Gürel	23 · 82% · 67%	–	–	5 · 18% · 60%
Nihal Sarin	15 · 47% · 43%	6 · 19% · 67%	6 · 19% · 33%	5 · 16% · 100%
Arjun Erigaisi	–	46 · 82% · 78%	6 · 11% · 58%	4 · 7% · 75%
Jan-Krzysztof Duda	61 · 65% · 84%	7 · 7% · 86%	21 · 22% · 79%	5 · 5% · 80%
Pranesh M	19 · 48% · 61%	14 · 35% · 64%	6 · 15% · 50%	1 · 3% · 100%
Dmitry Andreikin	5 · 38% · 70%	–	–	8 · 62% · 94%
Nodirbek Abdusattorov	8 · 57% · 56%	–	–	6 · 43% · 83%

System	Games	Share	Score	Avg opponent	Plays it most (share)
Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4)	1,329	55%	72%	3,000	Tuan Minh Le · 95% (419 games)
Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4)	684	29%	70%	3,004	Arjun Erigaisi · 82% (46 games)
Direct (2.Bf4)	316	13%	70%	2,980	Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus · 48% (38 games)
Other systems	66	3%	70%	2,990	Magnus Carlsen · 10% (6 games)

Player by player

The move order each player chose most often, and what they play after 1…Nf6.

Hikaru Nakamura

13 games in the London · score 96%

Main choice: Direct (2.Bf4), 8 games (62%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 5 games; most often 2.Bf4 (3 games)

Magnus Carlsen

60 games in the London · score 79%

Main choice: Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4), 29 games (48%)

Next: Direct (2.Bf4), 25 games (42%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 40 games; most often 2.Nc3 (Jobava London), 22 games

Denis Lazavik

25 games in the London · score 82%

Main choice: Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4), 16 games (64%)

Next: Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4), 7 games (28%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 20 games; most often 2.Nc3 (Jobava London), 13 games

Ediz Gürel

28 games in the London · score 66%

Main choice: Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4), 23 games (82%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 18 games; most often 2.Nf3 (15 games)

Nihal Sarin

32 games in the London · score 55%

Main choice: Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4), 15 games (47%)

Next: Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4), 6 games (19%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 16 games and varies the second move: none more than 6 times

Arjun Erigaisi

56 games in the London · score 76%

Main choice: Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4), 46 games (82%)

Next: Direct (2.Bf4), 6 games (11%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 37 games; most often 2.Nc3 (Jobava London), 31 games

Jan-Krzysztof Duda

94 games in the London · score 82%

Main choice: Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4), 61 games (65%)

Next: Direct (2.Bf4), 21 games (22%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 54 games; most often 2.Nf3 (33 games)

Pranesh M

40 games in the London · score 61%

Main choice: Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4), 19 games (48%)

Next: Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4), 14 games (35%)

Meets 1…Nf6 in 26 games and varies the second move: none more than 12 times

Dmitry Andreikin

13 games in the London · score 85%

Spreads the games across many systems.

Meets 1…Nf6 in 7 games; most often 2.Nf3 (5 games)

Nodirbek Abdusattorov

14 games in the London · score 68%

Main choice: Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4), 8 games (57%)

After 1…Nf6: move 2

1,431 games reached 1…Nf6 (1.d4 Nf6). White's second move, player by player.

2.Nf3
2.Nc3 (Jobava London)
2.Bf4
Other second moves

All 47 players with games

Hikaru Nakamura (5)

Magnus Carlsen (40)

Denis Lazavik (20)

Ediz Gürel (18)

Nihal Sarin (16)

Arjun Erigaisi (37)

Jan-Krzysztof Duda (54)

Pranesh M (26)

Dmitry Andreikin (7)

Alireza Firouzja (10)

Faded rows: fewer than 20 1…Nf6 games.

Table view

Each cell: games · share of the player's 1…Nf6 games · score
Player	2.Nf3	2.Nc3 (Jobava London)	2.Bf4	Other second moves
All 47 players with games	769 · 54% · 72%	469 · 33% · 71%	183 · 13% · 68%	10 · 1% · 95%
Hikaru Nakamura	–	–	3 · 60% · 100%	2 · 40% · 100%
Magnus Carlsen	–	22 · 55% · 68%	16 · 40% · 84%	2 · 5% · 100%
Denis Lazavik	7 · 35% · 71%	13 · 65% · 81%	–	–
Ediz Gürel	15 · 83% · 77%	–	–	3 · 17% · 67%
Nihal Sarin	4 · 25% · 50%	6 · 38% · 67%	6 · 38% · 33%	–
Arjun Erigaisi	–	31 · 84% · 77%	6 · 16% · 58%	–
Jan-Krzysztof Duda	33 · 61% · 86%	7 · 13% · 86%	14 · 26% · 86%	–
Pranesh M	12 · 46% · 54%	8 · 31% · 63%	6 · 23% · 50%	–
Dmitry Andreikin	5 · 71% · 70%	–	–	2 · 29% · 100%
Alireza Firouzja	–	5 · 50% · 60%	3 · 30% · 67%	2 · 20% · 100%

Move explorer

Starts after 1.d4. Pick all 47 players or one of them, then click a move to go deeper. Rarer moves are grouped as other moves.

1.d4

Queen's Pawn Game

2,395 games · top players scored 71%

Other moves: 17 games

Questions people ask

What do top players play in the London?: In Chess.com blitz, the top 50 players go into the Nf3-first move order in 55% of 2,395 games. Here the Nf3-first move order means 2.Nf3 and then Bf4 on move 3, whatever Black played on move 1. The rest: the Jobava London 29%, the direct 2.Bf4 13%, other systems 3%.
What is the second most common system in the London?: The next most played system is the Jobava London, in 29% of games. Here that means 2.Nc3 and then Bf4 on move 3, whatever Black played on move 1. Next: the direct 2.Bf4 at 13%.
What does Magnus Carlsen play in the London?: In 60 blitz games as White in the London System, Black's most common first moves were 1…Nf6 (40 games), 1…d5 (18 games). Magnus Carlsen's main choice was the Jobava London, 29 games (48%); then the direct 2.Bf4, 25 games (42%).
What do top players play after 1…Nf6?: In the 1,431 games that reached 1…Nf6 (1.d4 Nf6), the most common second move is 2.Nf3 (769 games, 54%), followed by 2.Nc3 Jobava London (469 games, 33%).
Does a high score mean the opening is good?: Not by itself. Scores also reflect the rating gap between the top players and their opponents. Compare lines by how often the top players choose them, and use the scores as context.
Where do these numbers come from?: From up to 1,000 Chess.com blitz games as White of each of the top 50 players on the leaderboard. 2,395 of them are London System games: 1.d4 with Bf4 on move 2 or 3, before any c4 or Bg5. A win counts as 1 and a draw as ½, from the top player's side. The games were last refreshed on 30 Oct 2026.

How we counted

We took the Chess.com blitz games as White of each of the top 50 players on the leaderboard, up to 1,000 each, and kept the ones that are London System games: 1.d4 with Bf4 on move 2 or 3, before any c4 or Bg5. Each game counts under the first rule below that fits it:

Nf3 first (2.Nf3, 3.Bf4): 2.Nf3 and then Bf4 on move 3, whatever Black played on move 1.
Jobava (2.Nc3, 3.Bf4): 2.Nc3 and then Bf4 on move 3, whatever Black played on move 1.
Direct (2.Bf4): 2.Bf4, whatever Black played on move 1.
Other systems: everything else.

A win counts as 1 and a draw as ½, from the top player's side. Scores also reflect the rating gap: opponents average about 3,000.

A game is a London when White plays Bf4 on move 2 or 3, before any c4 or Bg5: 1.d4 d5 2.Bf4, 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4, 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4 and the Jobava 1.d4 d5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bf4 all count. The system is White’s second move, whichever reply Black chose: 1…d5 2.Nf3 and 1…Nf6 2.Nf3 count together. A row or a card built on fewer than 20 games is faded. Players with fewer than 10 games in the opening have no card or row; their games count in the totals.

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