King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Staunton Line
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Statistics from Lichess
1,760,744 games: White 45.9% / Draw 3.8% / Black 50.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit | 570,176570K | |
| 507,340507K | ||
| 214,958215K | ||
| 149,963150K | ||
| 137,039137K | ||
| 54,09654K | ||
| King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Anderssen Attack | 48,02348K | |
| 33,11233K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 28, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.25 The position is about equal
Best play: 4. d3 Qxd5 5. Nc3 Bb4 6. Bd2 Bxc3 7. Bxc3 Ne7 8. dxe4 Qxe4+
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 50% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 36K | |
| 1400–1799 | 622K | |
| 1800–2199 | 1.2M | |
| 2200 and up | 86K | |
| Masters, over the board | 193 |
Master games
- Rapport, R. – Bu Xiangzhi
- Short, N. D. – Karjakin, S.
- Spassky, B. V. – Bronstein, D. I.
- Zvjaginsev, V. – Chadaev, N.
- Varga, Z. – Gyimesi, Z.
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 Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Staunton Line (ECO C31, Open Games) is a gambit in the King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit Accepted, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. f4 d5 3. exd5 e4 (3 moves).
In 1,760,744 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 45.9%, Black 50.3% and 3.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. d3, in 32% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit and King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Rubinstein Variation. In all, 11 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 Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Staunton Line
The most played answer, 4. d3 (King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit), also scores best for White: 51.0%, with White winning 48.7% and Black 46.6% of 570K games. Of the main answers, 4. c4 scores lowest: 45.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 4. 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 Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Staunton Line has lost ground since 2016: 0.063% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.092% (its peak: 0.1% in 2017).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.092% | 32,993 |
| 2017 | 0.1% | 57,736 |
| 2018 | 0.098% | 77,110 |
| 2019 | 0.083% | 103,741 |
| 2020 | 0.067% | 195,495 |
| 2021 | 0.063% | 247,132 |
| 2022 | 0.067% | 250,163 |
| 2023 | 0.064% | 240,347 |
| 2024 | 0.064% | 229,264 |
| 2025 | 0.063% | 218,802 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.064% | 70,081 |
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 (3)
All 11 named lines that continue from here
- C31 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Anderssen Attack 4 moves
- C31 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit 4 moves
- C31 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Rubinstein Variation 5 moves
- C32 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit Accepted 5 moves
- C32 Keres Variation 5 moves
- C32 Old Line 5 moves
- C32 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Alapin Variation 9 moves
- C32 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit 6 moves
- C32 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Gambit, Main Line 7 moves
- C32 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Charousek Variation 8 moves
- C32 King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Tarrasch Variation 8 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Gambit Declined: Falkbeer Countergambit, Staunton Line (C31)”. Lichess data as of 28 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-gambit-declined-falkbeer-countergambit-staunton-line