King's Gambit Accepted: Hanstein Gambit
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Statistics from Lichess
247,622 games: White 41.8% / Draw 3.4% / Black 54.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 121,999122K | ||
| 77,06377K | ||
| 22,82823K | ||
| 6,5836,583 | ||
| 5,9685,968 | ||
| 4,0184,018 | ||
| 2,1562,156 | ||
| 1,8141,814 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 23, 2026
Engine evaluation
−1.56 Black is clearly better
Best play: 5... h6 6. c3 Ne7 7. d4 d5 8. exd5 O-O 9. h4 Nxd5 10. hxg5
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 52% under 1400, 43% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 3,569 | |
| 1400–1799 | 72K | |
| 1800–2199 | 178K | |
| 2200 and up | 11K | |
| Masters, over the board | 39 |
Master games
- Haimovich, T. – Fressinet, L.
- Grabarczyk, B. – Krasenkow, M.
- Sulskis, S. – Beinoras, M.
- Ponkratov, P. – Rakhmanov, A.
- Hynes, W. – Bendaña Guerrero, D. G. J.
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
King's Gambit Accepted: Hanstein Gambit (ECO C38, Open Games) is a gambit in the King's Gambit Accepted: Traditional Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Nf3 g5 4. Bc4 Bg7 5. O-O (5 moves).
In 247,622 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 41.8%, Black 54.7% and 3.4% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 5…h6, 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 King's Gambit Accepted: Hanstein Gambit
The most played answer, 5…h6, also scores best for Black: 58.2%, with Black winning 56.4% and White 40.0% of 122K games. Of the main answers, 5…d6 scores lowest: 56.4%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5…h6.
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 King's Gambit Accepted: Hanstein Gambit has lost ground since 2016: 0.0083% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.013% (its peak: 0.015% in 2017).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.013% | 4,526 |
| 2017 | 0.015% | 8,165 |
| 2018 | 0.013% | 10,538 |
| 2019 | 0.012% | 15,164 |
| 2020 | 0.0096% | 28,069 |
| 2021 | 0.0087% | 34,144 |
| 2022 | 0.0098% | 36,802 |
| 2023 | 0.0091% | 34,266 |
| 2024 | 0.009% | 32,422 |
| 2025 | 0.0083% | 28,938 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0084% | 9,174 |
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. “King's Gambit Accepted: Hanstein Gambit (C38)”. Lichess data as of 23 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-gambit-accepted-hanstein-gambit