C37

King's Gambit Accepted: Middleton Countergambit

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Statistics from Lichess

179 games: White 33.5% / Draw 0.6% / Black 65.9%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next move	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
	101101
	5353
	1010
	77
	33
	22
	11
	11

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 1, 2026

Engine evaluation

−3.54 Black is clearly better

Best play: 8. c3 Qf6 9. d4 gxf3 10. Rxf3 Nd7 11. Rh3 Rxh3 12. gxh3 O-O-O

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

King's Gambit Accepted: Middleton Countergambit (ECO C37, Open Games) is a gambit in the King's Gambit Accepted: King's Knight's Gambit, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Nf3 g5 4. Bc4 d6 5. O-O Bg4 6. h3 h5 7. hxg4 hxg4 (7 moves).

In 179 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 33.5%, Black 65.9% and 0.6% were drawn. White's most played move here is 8. Nh2, in 56% of those games.

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Description

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Caissa Codex. “King's Gambit Accepted: Middleton Countergambit (C37)”. Lichess data as of 1 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-gambit-accepted-middleton-countergambit

Statistics from Lichess

Engine evaluation

Overview

Other lines from the same position

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