Tree path 5 levels King's Pawn Game › Scandinavian Defense › Modern Variation › Scandinavian Defense: Modern Variation › Scandinavian Defense: Portuguese Gambit
- Chess Codex
- King's Pawn Game B00
- Scandinavian Defense B01
- Modern Variation B01
- Scandinavian Defense: Modern Variation B01
- Scandinavian Defense: Portuguese Gambit B01 you are here
Scandinavian Defense: Portuguese Gambit
Overview
Scandinavian Defense: Portuguese Gambit is a gambit, classified under ECO code B01 within the Semi-Open Games family. As with all gambits, one side sacrifices material early — usually a pawn — in exchange for development, open lines, or initiative.
The Semi-Open Games group covers semi-open games — replies to 1.e4 where Black declines the symmetrical 1…e5 in favour of an asymmetric pawn structure.
It begins with 6 plies and takes 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. d4 Bg4 to reach the canonical position.
It is a variation of Scandinavian Defense: Modern Variation, which itself descends from the root opening King's Pawn Game.
It is the root of 8 named variations, with Banker Variation, Classical Variation, Correspondence Refutation, and others among the most studied.
Step through the moves on the interactive board below, review the live Lichess statistics, or play this position against Stockfish at one of six difficulty levels.
- ECO code
- B01
- Group
- Semi-Open Games (B)
- Plies
- 6
- Direct variations
- 8
This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.
Statistics from Lichess
1,236,153 games · White 44.0% / Draw 5.1% / Black 50.9%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Be2 | 515,488 | |
| f3 | 350,414 | |
| Nf3 | 253,656 | |
| Bb5+ | 51,461 | |
| c4 | 22,827 | |
| Qd3 | 20,596 | |
| Ne2 | 7,662 | |
| Nc3 | 7,377 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:18:54
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