King's Gambit Accepted

In the King's Gambit Accepted (1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4) Black takes the pawn White offers on f4. White hopes to use the open f-file and quick development for an attack; Black either tries to keep the extra pawn or gives it back to develop.

Origins

The King's Gambit is one of the oldest openings. It is recorded in a work credited to Luis Ramírez de Lucena, the earliest game with it in the ChessBase MegaDatabase dates from 1560, and Ruy López de Segura was the first to publish analysis of it. Gioachino Greco played it to great effect in the early 17th century. It was at its most popular in the Romantic era, when it featured in the famous Immortal Game of 1851, and Howard Staunton's Chess-Player's Handbook (1847) gave it 109 of its 343 pages on openings.

By the late 19th century it was in decline, as leading players came to see it as likely unsound. In the 1960s Bobby Fischer argued in his article "A Bust to the King's Gambit" that it loses by force, including to his own Fischer Defense. It has stayed rare at the top, though Alekhine, Keres, Tal, Spassky and even Fischer played it, and it has never lost its popularity among club players.

The idea

3.Nf3, the King's Knight's Gambit, is White's most popular move: it develops and stops 3...Qh4+. Black's two main approaches are to hold the pawn with ...g5, sometimes prepared by ...h6, or to return it with an early ...d5 for easier development; the two can be combined.

Main lines

• 3.Nf3 g5, the Classical Variation:
  • 4.h4 g4 5.Ne5, the Kieseritzky Gambit, which modern writers such as John Shaw and Joseph Gallagher consider the main line. Boris Spassky used it to beat Fischer at Mar del Plata in 1960;
  • 4.h4 g4 5.Ng5, the Allgaier Gambit, a knight sacrifice that modern theory considers unsound;
  • 4.Bc4, usually aiming for the Muzio Gambit after 4...g4 5.O-O, where White sacrifices a knight for an attack on f7; 4...Bg7 is a safer reply, leading to the Hanstein Gambit or the Philidor Gambit;
  • 4.Nc3, the Quaade Gambit, recommended by John Shaw in his 2013 book.
• 3.Nf3 d6, the Fischer Defense, which Fischer called "a high-class waiting move".
• 3.Nf3 d5, the Modern Defense, returning the pawn.
• Other third moves: 3...Be7 (Cunningham Defense), 3...Nf6 (Schallopp Defense), 3...h6 (Becker Defense) and 3...Nc6 (MacLeod Defense).
• 3.Bc4, the Bishop's Gambit, White's main alternative to 3.Nf3.

Strengths and weaknesses

Strengths

• Open lines and fast development for White, with sharp attacking play.
• In wild lines such as the Muzio, White's play is often easier in practice, especially against a surprised opponent.

Weaknesses

• By playing f4, White opens two diagonals that normally protect the king.
• Since the late 19th century leading players have regarded the gambit as likely unsound.

Who should play it

The King's Gambit Accepted suits attacking players who enjoy tactics and are willing to take risks; Black needs to know at least one sound defence, such as the Fischer or the Modern.

The numbers

On Lichess White does very well below 2200: 53.8% against 43.1% under 1400, 54.1% against 42.9% at 1400–1799 and 50.6% against 45.8% at 1800–2199. From 2200 up the results level out, 47.4% for White and 47.5% for Black. In about 3,300 master games over the board White won 26.3%, Black 36.2%, and 37.5% were drawn.