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Final position — White is winning

Centre Game

Centre Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice

White wins in 9 moves with a decisive material gain. (Unknown - Leonhardt, Leipzig 1903)

The moves

1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Qxd4 Nc6 4.Qe3 Nf6 5.Bc4 Ne5 6.Bb3 Bb4+ 7.c3 Bc5 8.Qg3 Bxf2+ 9.Kxf2 Nxe4+
1.e4e5
2.d4exd4
3.Qxd4Nc6
4.Qe3Nf6
5.Bc4Ne5
6.Bb3Bb4+
7.c3Bc5
8.Qg3Bxf2+
9.Kxf2Nxe4+

How the Centre Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice works

The Centre Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Centre Game. In this line White wins decisive material by move 9, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.

The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Qxd4 Nc6 4.Qe3 Nf6 5.Bc4 Ne5 6.Bb3 Bb4+ 7.c3 Bc5 8.Qg3 Bxf2+ 9.Kxf2 Nxe4+. Each move looks reasonable, which is exactly why the trap is so effective over the board — Black walks into it while trying to play "normal" developing moves.

This pattern is well known from master and correspondence play (Unknown - Leonhardt, Leipzig 1903). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as White or sidestep it as Black.

Practice this trap move-by-move

Open the Centre Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice 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.

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