Tree path 5 levels King's Pawn Game › Sicilian Defense › Sicilian Defense › Old Sicilian › Sicilian Defense: Portsmouth Gambit
- Chess Codex
- King's Pawn Game B00
- Sicilian Defense B20
- Sicilian Defense B27
- Old Sicilian B30
- Sicilian Defense: Portsmouth Gambit B30 you are here
Sicilian Defense: Portsmouth Gambit
Overview
Sicilian Defense: Portsmouth Gambit is a gambit, classified under ECO code B30 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 5 plies and takes 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. b4 to reach the canonical position.
It is a variation of Sicilian Defense: Old Sicilian, which itself descends from the root opening King's Pawn Game.
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
- B30
- Group
- Semi-Open Games (B)
- Plies
- 5
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
715,348 games · White 52.9% / Draw 3.8% / Black 43.3%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| cxb4 | 361,715 | |
| Nxb4 | 216,591 | |
| b6 | 43,060 | |
| e6 | 35,270 | |
| e5 | 21,384 | |
| d6 | 17,932 | |
| g6 | 4,942 | |
| d5 | 4,632 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:08:35
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