Final position — Black delivers mate
Stafford Gambit Trap
Black wins in 8 moves by checkmate.
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nf6 |
| 3. | Nxe5 | Nc6 |
| 4. | Nxc6 | dxc6 |
| 5. | d3 | Bc5 |
| 6. | Bg5 | Nxe4 |
| 7. | Bxd8 | Bxf2+ |
| 8. | Ke2 | Bg4# |
How the Stafford Gambit Trap works
The Stafford Gambit Trap is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Petrov's defence. In this line Black delivers checkmate on move 8, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from White.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 Nc6 4.Nxc6 dxc6 5.d3 Bc5 6.Bg5 Nxe4 7.Bxd8 Bxf2+ 8.Ke2 Bg4#. Each move looks reasonable, which is exactly why the trap is so effective over the board — White walks into it while trying to play "normal" developing moves.
Recognising this pattern early lets you either spring it as Black or calmly sidestep it when you are White.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the Stafford Gambit Trap in the Trapsterapp to play it out on a live board, drill it in practice mode, and learn how to avoid it when it's set for you — along with the full library of chess traps and gambits, fully offline.