Danish Gambit Accepted
Chess opening · ECO C21 · 6 half-moves
1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. c3 dxc3
The Danish Gambit Accepted is reached after 1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. c3 dxc3. It is White's move in the position shown.
It branches from the Danish Gambit with 3… dxc3.
How often it is played
The Danish Gambit Accepted and its variations appeared in 0.19% of games — 5,631 of 3,000,000 rated games sampled from Lichess in September 2026. That makes it number 192 of the openings listed here.
Results
White won 55%, 3.0% were drawn and Black won 42%. These are games between players of every strength and time control, so they say how the opening does in practice rather than how sound it is.
What the engine thinks
Stockfish, at depth 18, evaluates the position at -0.31 — a small edge for Black. Positive numbers favour White; see reading the evaluation bar.
Similar openings
The most-played alternatives — what else could have been chosen around the move where this opening begins.
| Opening | Moves | Share of games |
|---|---|---|
| Center Game: Normal Variation | 1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. Qxd4 Nc6 | 0.29% |
| King's Knight Opening | 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 | 15% |
| Sicilian Defense | 1. e4 c5 | 9.6% |
Main continuations
| Variation | Moves | Share of games |
|---|---|---|
| Danish Gambit Accepted: Copenhagen Defense | 1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Bc4 cxb2 5. Bxb2 Bb4+ | 0.02% |
| Danish Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense | 1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Bc4 cxb2 5. Bxb2 Nf6 | 0.01% |
| Danish Gambit Accepted: Chigorin Defense | 1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Bc4 cxb2 5. Bxb2 Qe7 | 0.00% |
| Danish Gambit Accepted: Schlechter Defense | 1. e4 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Bc4 cxb2 5. Bxb2 d5 | 0.00% |
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