Vienna Game

Main ideas

Pawn structure

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 keeps White's options open: f4 for a King's Gambit-style attack with the knight already supporting e4, Bc4 against f7, or g3 for a quieter game. The center is usually open or semi-open, and the f-file is a key factor in White's attacking plans.

Traps and common mistakes

Mate on f7 after ...Nxe4

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bc4 Nxe4 4. Qh5 Nf6 5. Qxf7#

After 3. Bc4 Nxe4 4. Qh5, White threatens mate on f7. The natural-looking retreat 4...Nf6?? allows 5. Qxf7 mate; Black has to play 4...Nd6, which leads into the Frankenstein-Dracula Variation.

Taking on f4 in the Vienna Gambit

After 3. f4, the King's Gambit reflex 3...exf4 lets White push e5 and drive the f6 knight back with tempo. Black's best answer is usually 3...d5, hitting the center at once.

Who should play the Vienna Game?

Players with White who want attacking chances against 1...e5 with less risk than the King's Gambit, and those who like having a choice between sharp and quiet set-ups. It is also a practical surprise weapon, since many players who answer 1. e4 with 1...e5 prepare mainly for the Ruy Lopez and the Italian. Black players should know at least the 3. f4 d5 and 3. Bc4 Nxe4 lines to stay out of trouble.

History

Named after the city of Vienna, whose players, among them Carl Hamppe, developed it in the second half of the 19th century. It was popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and became rare at elite level after the 1930s, though grandmasters still use it as a surprise weapon. Rudolf Spielmann, a great attacking player of the early 20th century, was a leading exponent of the Vienna Gambit (5. Qf3 is known as Spielmann's move), and Viswanathan Anand is among the modern grandmasters who have played the Vienna.