Italian Game: Evans Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4
Evans Gambit
1.2.3.4.
What Is The Evans Gambit?
The Evans Gambit gives up the b-pawn for one thing: time. After 4...Bxb4 5.c3 the bishop must move again, and 6.d4 builds a full pawn center while Black retreats. Every tempo Black spends rescuing the bishop, White invests in development and pressure on f7. White is not playing to regain the pawn, White is playing to open the position before Black finishes developing.
Black's best plan is concrete: return the pawn at the right moment, often with ...d5, trade pieces and reach an endgame where White's queenside is loose. That trade-off decides Evans games: cling to the pawn and the attack lands on f7, hand it back calmly and White's initiative dies. Kasparov revived it to beat Anand, so treat it as a serious weapon, not a museum piece.
What Do Players Choose At The Decision Point?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| c3 | 28% | 2,763 | |
| O-O | 21% | 2,126 | |
| d3 | 21% | 2,124 | |
| Nc3 | 12% | 1,195 |
How Does Play Continue From Here?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bxb4 | 74% | 480 | |
| Bb6 | 14% | 91 | |
| Nxb4 | 6% | 36 | |
| d6 | 1% | 8 |
The Named Lines Of The Evans Gambit
| Line | Moves |
|---|---|
| Fontaine Countergambit | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 b5 |
| Hein Countergambit | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 d5 |
| Anderssen Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Be7 |
| Mayet Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bf8 |
| McDonnell Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 |
| Stone-Ware Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bd6 |
| Main Line | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 |
| Slow Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.O-O |
| Bronstein Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 d6 |
| Leonhardt Countergambit | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 b5 |
| Anderssen Variation, Cordel Line | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Be7 6.d4 Na5 |
| Laroche Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 Nf6 |
| Pierce Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 |
| Sokolsky Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 d6 7.Bg5 |
| Tartakower Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 d6 7.Qb3 |
| Alapin-Steinitz Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.O-O d6 7.d4 Bg4 |
| Lasker Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.O-O d6 7.d4 Bb6 |
| Sanders-Alapin Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.O-O d6 7.d4 Bd7 |
| Dufresne Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d3 |
| Johner Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O b5 |
| Anderssen Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.O-O Nf6 7.d4 exd4 |
| Compromised Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O dxc3 |
| Mieses Defense | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O Nge7 |
| Waller Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.Qb3 |
| Richardson Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.O-O Nf6 7.d4 O-O 8.Nxe5 |
| Harding Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4 Bb4+ 8.Bd2 |
| McDonnell Defense, Main Line | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 |
| Morphy Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.Nc3 |
| Ulvestad Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.d5 Na5 10.Bb2 |
| Fraser Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.Nc3 Bg4 10.Qa4 |
| Göring Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.Nc3 Na5 10.Bg5 |
| Paulsen Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.d5 Na5 10.Bb2 Ne7 |
| Steinitz Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.Nc3 Na5 10.Bg5 f6 11.Be3 |
| Levenfish Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 d6 7.Qb3 Qd7 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.O-O Bb6 10.Ba3 Na5 11.Nxe5 |
| Compromised Defense, Main Line | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O dxc3 8.Qb3 Qf6 9.e5 Qg6 10.Nxc3 Nge7 11.Ba3 |
| Compromised Defense, Potter Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O dxc3 8.Qb3 Qf6 9.e5 Qg6 10.Nxc3 Nge7 11.Rd1 |
| Fraser-Mortimer Attack | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.Nc3 Bg4 10.Qa4 Bd7 11.Qb3 Na5 12.Bxf7+ Kf8 13.Qc2 |