Englund Gambit: Zilbermints Gambit
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Statistics from Lichess
301,853 games: White 49.7% / Draw 5.1% / Black 45.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 69,87970K | ||
| 64,28664K | ||
| 50,04750K | ||
| 39,91040K | ||
| 25,08125K | ||
| 16,51717K | ||
| 13,49513K | ||
| 6,0506,050 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+2.11 White is clearly better
Even so, Black scores 47.7% here in practice: wins plus half the draws in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500.
Best play: 4. Nc3 h6 5. b3 Ng6 6. Bb2 d6 7. exd6 Bxd6 8. Nb5 Bb4+
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 45% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 57K | |
| 1400–1799 | 171K | |
| 1800–2199 | 180K | |
| 2200 and up | 17K | |
| Masters, over the board | 6 |
Master games
- Afanasiev, N. – Boiarintsev, V.
- Drygalov, A. – Boiarintsev, V.
- Matveeva, S. – Gansvind, V. I.
- Cousins, R. – Blomquist, G.
- Kachar, V. – Gansvind, V. I.
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 27, 2026
Overview
Englund Gambit: Zilbermints Gambit (ECO A40, Flank Openings) is a gambit in the Englund Gambit, reached after 1. d4 e5 2. dxe5 Nc6 3. Nf3 Nge7 (3 moves).
In 301,853 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.7%, Black 45.2% and 5.1% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. Bf4, in 23% 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 Englund Gambit: Zilbermints Gambit
4. Bg5 scores best for White: 53.9%, with White winning 51.5% and Black 43.7% of 50K games. The most played, 4. Bf4, scores 52.7% in 70K games, and 4. e3 scores lowest: 49.9%. Stockfish's first choice is 4. Nc3.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White'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 Englund Gambit: Zilbermints Gambit is played more than twice as often as in 2016: 0.014% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.0064%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0064% | 2,272 |
| 2017 | 0.0077% | 4,228 |
| 2018 | 0.0084% | 6,576 |
| 2019 | 0.0086% | 10,736 |
| 2020 | 0.0091% | 26,537 |
| 2021 | 0.01% | 40,323 |
| 2022 | 0.012% | 46,881 |
| 2023 | 0.013% | 49,604 |
| 2024 | 0.014% | 49,762 |
| 2025 | 0.014% | 46,894 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.013% | 14,021 |
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Englund Gambit: Zilbermints Gambit (A40)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/englund-gambit-zilbermints-gambit