Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit
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Statistics from Lichess
1,207 games: White 53.6% / Draw 2.8% / Black 43.6%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 595595 | ||
| 256256 | ||
| 239239 | ||
| 6262 | ||
| 2222 | ||
| 1010 | ||
| 77 | ||
| 66 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
−4.15 Black is clearly better
Even so, White scores 55.0% here in practice: wins plus half the draws in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500.
Best play: 5... O-O 6. fxe5 Nxe5 7. Bb5 d5 8. d4 Bg4 9. Nf3 a6 10. Ba4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit (ECO C23, Open Games) is a gambit in the Bishop's Opening: Lopez Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. Qe2 Nc6 4. c3 Nf6 5. f4 (5 moves).
In 1,207 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 53.6%, Black 43.6% and 2.8% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 5…d6, in 49% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit
5…O-O scores best for Black: 53.7%, with Black winning 52.7% and White 45.3% of 256 games. The most played, 5…d6, scores 43.4% in 595 games, and 5…exf4 scores lowest: 40.6%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5…O-O.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit (C23)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/bishops-opening-lopez-gambit