King's Gambit Accepted: Muzio Gambit, Sarratt Defense
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Statistics from Lichess
216,066 games: White 48.6% / Draw 2.8% / Black 48.5%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 68,17668K | ||
| 55,34955K | ||
| 50,99751K | ||
| King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit, Bello Gambit | 22,52823K | |
| 9,9219,921 | ||
| 3,8613,861 | ||
| 1,5571,557 | ||
| 1,0841,084 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
−1.28 Black is better
Best play: 7. d3 Nc6 8. Bxf4 d6 9. Nc3 Qg7 10. Nd5 Kd8 11. Qe3 Be6
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 55% under 1400, 53% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 3,260 | |
| 1400–1799 | 75K | |
| 1800–2199 | 150K | |
| 2200 and up | 6,362 | |
| Masters, over the board | 38 |
Master games
- Arribas Lopez, A. – Aguera Naredo, J.
- Tsarenkov, N. – Novichkov, V.
- Sokolov, A. – Sahidi, S.
- Jonkman, H. – Godena, M.
- Medgyes, Z. – Lee, M.
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: Muzio Gambit, Sarratt Defense (ECO C37, Open Games) is a gambit in the King's Gambit Accepted: Muzio Gambit, Wild Muzio Gambit, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Nf3 g5 4. Bc4 g4 5. O-O gxf3 6. Qxf3 Qf6 (6 moves).
In 216,066 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.6%, Black 48.5% and 2.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. c3, in 32% of those games.
It branches into 4 named variations; the most played are King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit and King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit, Bello Gambit. In all, 5 named lines continue from it.
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: Muzio Gambit, Sarratt Defense
7. e5 scores best for White: 59.3%, with White winning 58.1% and Black 39.5% of 55K games. The most played answer, 7. c3, scores lowest: 44.3% in 68K games. Stockfish's first choice is 7. d3.
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 King's Gambit Accepted: Muzio Gambit, Sarratt Defense peaked in 2017 at 0.01% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.0078% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0086% | 3,058 |
| 2017 | 0.01% | 5,777 |
| 2018 | 0.01% | 8,071 |
| 2019 | 0.01% | 12,919 |
| 2020 | 0.0079% | 23,228 |
| 2021 | 0.0076% | 29,851 |
| 2022 | 0.0085% | 32,056 |
| 2023 | 0.0086% | 32,212 |
| 2024 | 0.0081% | 29,208 |
| 2025 | 0.0078% | 27,124 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0079% | 8,670 |
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
Variations (4)
All 5 named lines that continue from here
- C37 King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit 8 moves
- C37 King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit, Bello Gambit 7 moves
- C37 King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit, Paulsen Defense 11 moves
- C37 King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit, Young Gambit 10 moves
- C37 King's Gambit Accepted: Double Muzio Gambit, Baldwin Gambit 9 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Gambit Accepted: Muzio Gambit, Sarratt Defense (C37)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-gambit-accepted-muzio-gambit-sarratt-defense