Budapest Gambit
You play Black · 6 variations
Mixed practice
The machine picks a different variation every time.
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10 positions: find the next theory move in each. No take-backs, no hints.
Main variations · 6
- Budapest Gambit Accepted, Main Line, Alekhine Variation, Abonyi VariationA521. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. e4 Nxe54 moves
- Budapest Gambit Accepted, Main Line, Alekhine Variation, Tartakower DefenseA521. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. e4 d64 moves
- Budapest Gambit Accepted, Main Line, Adler VariationA521. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Nf34 moves
- Budapest Gambit Accepted, Main Line, Rubinstein VariationA521. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Bf44 moves
- Budapest Gambit Accepted, Fajarowicz Defense, Bonsdorf VariationA511. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ne4 4. a34 moves
- Budapest Gambit Accepted, Fajarowicz Defense, Steiner VariationA511. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ne4 4. Qc24 moves
What is the Budapest Gambit?
The Budapest Gambit begins 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5. You offer the e-pawn to unsettle White's centre and develop with tempo, and in most lines you win the pawn back on e5. It is a sharp, open counter-attacking defence; it is rare at the top, where it is considered slightly dubious, but it is a respected surprise weapon with clear plans and plenty of traps.
Main ideas and plans
The main line is 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4, attacking e5 with the knight, followed by ...Nc6 and often ...Bb4+ or ...Bc5 with ...Qe7. In the Rubinstein Variation White defends the pawn with the bishop, and after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Bf4 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bb4+ 6.Nbd2 Qe7 7.e3 Ngxe5 you have regained it with comfortable development. The same line hides a famous trap: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Bf4 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bb4+ 6.Nbd2 Qe7 7.a3 Ngxe5 8.axb4 Nd3 is mate, because your queen pins the e2 pawn. In the Adler Variation White develops with Nf3 and you usually answer with ...Bc5 and ...Nc6. A typical Budapest plan is ...a5 followed by the rook lift ...Ra6, swinging the rook to the kingside along the sixth rank.
The most ambitious try is the Alekhine Variation, 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.e4, where White returns the pawn to build a big centre. In the Abonyi line, 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.e4 Nxe5 5.f4, your knight has to retreat and you fight the centre with quick development and pressure on the dark squares; the Tartakower Defense with ...d6 instead gives a pawn for speed. The Fajarowicz Defense, 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ne4, puts the knight in the centre; it is riskier, because you often cannot regain the pawn quickly, and the Steiner Variation with Qc2 and the Bonsdorf Variation with a3 test it directly.
Who is it for?
The Budapest suits tactical players who want an active, offbeat answer to queen's pawn openings with c4 and like setting practical problems. It needs little theory, but a well-prepared White can keep a small, stable edge, and it only appears after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4; if White plays the knight to f3 on move two, the gambit is no longer possible. Start with the main line with ...Ng4, the Rubinstein Variation and its trap, and the standard development with ...Nc6, ...Bb4+ and ...Qe7.