Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit
The Wing Gambit is 1.e4 c5 2.b4: White offers the b-pawn to deflect Black's c-pawn and win back control of the central square d4. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
4,097,730 games: White 49.0% / Draw 3.9% / Black 47.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 2,522,5612.5M | ||
| 446,373446K | ||
| 421,547422K | ||
| 213,466213K | ||
| 182,817183K | ||
| 162,320162K | ||
| 56,72657K | ||
| 35,52436K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 11, 2026
Engine evaluation
−0.22 The position is about equal
Best play: 2... cxb4 3. Nf3 e6 4. a3 a6 5. d4 d5 6. e5 bxa3 7. c3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 49% under 1400, 50% at 2200 and up and 43% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 208K | |
| 1400–1799 | 1.3M | |
| 1800–2199 | 2.8M | |
| 2200 and up | 438K | |
| Masters, over the board | 688 |
Master games
- Gareev, T. – Kamsky, G.
- Savchenko, B. – Dubov, D.
- Hug, W. – Anand, V.
- Pranav, V. – Daneshvar, B.
- Gareev, T. – Alekseev, E.
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 26, 2026
Description
The Wing Gambit is 1.e4 c5 2.b4: White offers the b-pawn to deflect Black's c-pawn and win back control of the central square d4. For the pawn White gets quicker development and a central advantage, but it is not generally considered one of White's better choices against the Sicilian. It is virtually never seen at professional level and is more common among amateurs.
Main lines
- After 2...cxb4 the usual continuation is 3.a3. Black can take again with 3...bxa3, and then the main line is 4.Nxa3, with 4.Bxa3 and 4.d4 also seen.
- 3...d5 is now considered stronger than 3...bxa3. Here White must avoid 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.axb4, which loses the rook to 5...Qe5+, a blunder actually seen in tournament play, Shirazi–Peters, Berkeley 1984. 5.Nf3 is better.
- 3.d4 is another popular third move. George Koltanowski, David Bronstein and World Champion Alexander Alekhine have played it.
- Black can also decline, or at least delay, the gambit with 2...d5.
Delayed versions
White can postpone the gambit by a move with 2.Nf3 and 3.b4. This Wing Gambit Deferred is considered best when Black has answered 2...e6. After 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.b4, the Portsmouth Gambit, Black is reluctant to decline because of the threat b5, which would drive the knight away. White can also prepare b4 with 2.a3.
The name Wing Gambit is also used for other early b4 gambits, for example 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.b4 in the Bishop's Opening, which Alexander McDonnell introduced in his 1834 match against La Bourdonnais.
The numbers
On Lichess White wins 49.0% of the 4.1 million games and Black 47.1%. Under 1400 Black is ahead, 49.8% against 47.3%, and from 2200 up the sides are level, 47.4% against 47.2%. In 688 master games over the board Black won 40.8%, White 27.2%, and 32.0% were drawn.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit
2…d6 scores best for Black: 50.6%, with Black winning 48.5% and White 47.3% of 213K games. The most played, 2…cxb4, scores 49.5% in 2.5M games, and 2…e6 scores lowest: 45.5%. Stockfish's first choice is 2…cxb4.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black'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 Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit has gained ground since 2016: 0.17% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.14%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.14% | 50,781 |
| 2017 | 0.15% | 83,719 |
| 2018 | 0.17% | 133,037 |
| 2019 | 0.16% | 203,288 |
| 2020 | 0.15% | 436,904 |
| 2021 | 0.14% | 560,260 |
| 2022 | 0.16% | 591,836 |
| 2023 | 0.16% | 591,977 |
| 2024 | 0.16% | 578,588 |
| 2025 | 0.17% | 605,351 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.17% | 189,964 |
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)
Transpositions
All 7 named lines that continue from here
- B20 Abrahams Variation 3 moves
- B20 Marshall Variation 3 moves
- B20 Santasiere Variation 3 moves
- B20 Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit, Carlsbad Variation 3 moves
- B20 Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit, Marienbad Variation 5 moves
- B20 Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit, Nanu Gambit 7 moves
- B20 Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit, Romanian Defense 7 moves
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Wing Gambit, version of 6 October 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit (B20)”. Lichess data as of 11 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-wing-gambit