Englund Gambit: Main Line

The main line of the Englund Gambit is 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.Nf3 Qe7. Black gives up a pawn, then tries to win it back by attacking e5 with the queen. Kārlis Bētiņš, who also established the Latvian Gambit, introduced this line, and Henri Grob used it frequently. The gambit is considered weak and is almost never seen in top-level play.

Keeping the pawn: 4.Qd5

White can hold on to the extra pawn with 4.Qd5, the Stockholm Variation. The 1932–33 thematic tournament sponsored by Fritz Englund, after whom the gambit is named, began from the position after 4.Qd5. Black usually challenges e5 at once with 4...f6, and play continues 5.exf6 Nxf6 6.Qb3 d5. After 7.Bf4 or 7.Bg5 Black keeps some compensation, but White keeps an edge.

Returning the pawn: 4.Bf4

Instead, White often lets Black regain the pawn at the cost of lagging development: 4.Bf4 Qb4+ 5.Bd2 Qxb2 6.Nc3. Here White must avoid the notorious trap 6.Bc3? Bb4!, which wins for Black after 7.Bxb4 Nxb4 or 7.Qd2 Bxc3 8.Qxc3 Qc1#. After 6.Nc3 Bb4 7.Rb1 Qa3 the main line continues 8.Rb3 Qa5, when White has some advantage thanks to the lead in development. However, 8.Nd5 has been improved for White, and Black has yet to find a good response. Black therefore sometimes tries 4...d6 instead.

Other tries

White's other major try is 4.Nc3 Nxe5 5.e4, which gives White a lead in development and leaves Black's queen awkwardly placed on e7.

The numbers

On Lichess White wins 49.2% of the 5.3 million games and Black 46.6%. The trend runs against Black as ratings rise: Black wins 52.4% under 1400 but only 40.5% from 2200 up, where White wins 53.3%. There are too few master games, 57, for their result to say much.