Danish Gambit
Also known as Nordic Gambit
The Danish Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3) is an aggressive gambit for White. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
10,967,458 games: White 54.3% / Draw 3.7% / Black 42.0%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Danish Gambit Accepted | 7,531,7487.5M | |
| 957,941958K | ||
| Danish Gambit Declined: Sörensen Defense | 924,095924K | |
| 395,148395K | ||
| 378,328378K | ||
| 263,040263K | ||
| 162,387162K | ||
| 148,071148K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 1, 2026
Engine evaluation
−0.33 Black is slightly better
Best play: 3... dxc3 4. Nxc3 Bc5 5. Bc4 d6 6. Nf3 Nf6 7. e5 dxe5 8. Qxd8+
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for White: White scores 55% under 1400, 51% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 3.7M | |
| 1400–1799 | 9.3M | |
| 1800–2199 | 5.6M | |
| 2200 and up | 282K | |
| Masters, over the board | 200 |
Master games
- Nakamura, H. – Ibragimov, I.
- Theodorou, N. – Demchenko, A.
- Rombaldoni, A. – Georgiev, K.
- Brodda, W. – Repp, H.
- Theodorou, N. – Iniyan, P.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 26, 2026
Description
The Danish Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3) is an aggressive gambit for White. White offers one or even two pawns for a huge lead in development and two bishops raking across the board towards Black's king.
Origins
The Danish player Martin Severin From played it at the Paris tournament of 1867 and is usually given credit for it. However, the Swedish player Hans Lindehn was playing 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 regularly from 1857 at the latest. In Denmark itself it is called the Nordic Gambit. It was popular with attacking masters such as Alexander Alekhine, Frank Marshall, Joseph Blackburne and Jacques Mieses, but it lost favour in the 1920s as better defences for Black were found.
The idea
After 3...dxc3 4.Bc4 cxb2 5.Bxb2, White has given up two pawns. In return White has both bishops aimed at Black's kingside, with the c4-bishop on f7 and the b2-bishop on the long diagonal, plus a big lead in development. Black must develop quickly and give back material at the right moment.
Main lines
- Accepted 3...dxc3 4.Bc4 cxb2 5.Bxb2, with several defences:
- Schlechter Defence 5...d5: Carl Schlechter recommended returning a pawn to free Black's game. This is one of the most reliable defences, and it made the Danish much less popular.
- 5...Nf6 and 5...Bb4+: natural development.
- Declined: the Sørensen Defence 3...d5, or 3...Qe7.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- An enormous lead in development and two powerful bishops.
- Many traps and quick wins against unprepared opponents.
- Great for learning attacking play and the value of development.
Weaknesses
- With the Schlechter Defence, Black returns material and reaches a comfortable position that isn't what White wants from a gambit.
- Black can also decline with 3...d5 and get easy play.
- Rarely played in top-level chess.
Who should play it
The Danish suits attacking players who love open positions and bishops, and it is a great club and blitz weapon. It is effective against opponents who grab both pawns and then develop slowly. It is less effective against well-prepared defenders who know 5...d5 or who decline with 3...d5.
The numbers
On Lichess White does well at club level: below 2200 White wins 53.7–54.9% and Black 41.9–43.3%. Above 2200 it is closer, 48% against 46%. There are only about 200 master games with it, too few to judge.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Danish Gambit
3…d5 (Danish Gambit Declined: Sörensen Defense) scores best for Black: 52.2%, with Black winning 49.6% and White 45.2% of 924K games. The most played answer, 3…dxc3, scores lowest: 42.1% in 7.5M games. Stockfish's first choice is 3…dxc3.
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
Popularity by year
The Danish Gambit has lost ground since 2016: 0.4% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.49%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.49% | 175,776 |
| 2017 | 0.49% | 271,198 |
| 2018 | 0.45% | 353,322 |
| 2019 | 0.44% | 545,746 |
| 2020 | 0.4% | 1,166,472 |
| 2021 | 0.44% | 1,709,489 |
| 2022 | 0.42% | 1,580,520 |
| 2023 | 0.44% | 1,637,687 |
| 2024 | 0.42% | 1,519,000 |
| 2025 | 0.4% | 1,400,220 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.39% | 423,574 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (3)
All 7 named lines that continue from here
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Danish Gambit, version of 16 October 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Danish Gambit (C21)”. Lichess data as of 1 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/danish-gambit