Forever Chess GamesForever Chess Games Logo
CreateGiftsProductsGamesPlayersOpeningsTop 100FAQ

Explore

  • Players
  • Openings
  • Famous Games
  • Top 100 Games
  • World Championships

Create

  • Create Visualisation
  • How It Works
  • Gift Ideas

Eras

  • 1880s – Classical
  • 1960s – Fischer Era
  • 1990s – Kasparov Era
  • 2020s – Modern

Info

  • FAQ
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of Use

© 2026 Forever Chess Games. All Rights Reserved

  1. Home
  2. /Openings
  3. /Caro-Kann Defense (B12)
B12

Caro-Kann Defense

Key moves: 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5

The Advance Variation creates a fixed pawn structure where White gains space but Black has clear counterplay against the d4 pawn. The resulting positions are strategic with plans for both sides.

History & Notable Players

Gained popularity in the 1990s and 2000s as a way to get interesting positions against the Caro-Kann.

Top Players in this Opening

Shirov,A181 gamesFirouzja,Alireza152 gamesGrischuk,A121 gamesKeymer,Vincent104 gamesNakamura,Hi97 gamesNavara,D93 gamesCaruana,F82 gamesKarjakin,Sergey82 gamesNepomniachtchi,I79 gamesSvidler,P79 games

Related Openings

B10 - Caro-Kann Defense1159B11 - Caro-Kann Defense: Two Knights Attack, Mindeno Variation380B13 - Caro-Kann Defense: Panov Attack785B14 - Caro-Kann Defense: Panov Attack327B15 - Caro-Kann Defense510B16 - Caro-Kann Defense: Finnish Variation116B17 - Caro-Kann Defense: Karpov Variation509B18 - Caro-Kann Defense: Martian Gambit332B19 - Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation474

Best Games

So,W vs Firouzja,Alireza1/2-1/2
12th Sinquefield Cup 2025Notable
Shirov,A vs Rapport,R1/2-1/2
45th Olympiad 2024 2024Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Firouzja,Alireza0-1
Saint Louis Blitz 2024 2024Notable
Dominguez Perez,L vs Rapport,R1-0
10th Sinquefield Cup 2023Notable
Dominguez Perez,L vs Firouzja,Alireza0-1
Saint Louis Rapid 2022 2022Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Keymer,Vincent0-1
55th Biel GM Blitz 2022 2022Notable
Vachier Lagrave,M vs Alekseenko,K1-0
FIDE Candidates 2020 2021Notable
Caruana,F vs Firouzja,Alireza1/2-1/2
8th Norway Chess 2020 2020Notable
Aronian,L vs Grischuk,A1-0
Saint Louis Blitz 2020 2020Notable
Dominguez Perez,L vs Firouzja,Alireza1-0
Saint Louis Rapid 2020 2020Notable
Nakamura,Hi vs Firouzja,Alireza1-0
Saint Louis Rapid 2020 2020Notable
Nakamura,Hi vs Carlsen,M0-1
Saint Louis Rapid 2020 2020Notable
Erigaisi,Arjun vs Fedoseev,Vl31-0
PNWCC Bullet (1+1) 2020 2020Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Bykhovsky,Av1-0
PNWCC Blitz Championship 2020Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Berkovich,Mark1-0
PNWCC Online Blitz JP 16 2020Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Leiva,G1-0
PNWCC Online Blitz JP 16 2020Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Tian,Eddy1-0
PNWCC Online Blitz JP 15 2020Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Chen,Aidan1-0
PNWCC Online Blitz JP 13 2020Notable
Abdusattorov,Nodirbek vs Desai,Ved1-0
PNWCC Online Blitz JP 12 2020Notable
Karjakin,Sergey vs Postny,E1/2-1/2
PNWCC Online Blitz JP 12 2020Notable

Explore More

All OpeningsAll Players