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Final position — White is winning

Vienna Game

Vienna Game: Bxf7 Sacrifice

White wins in 8 moves with a decisive material gain. (Keizer - Kroes, Postal 1991)

The moves

1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5 4.Bxf7+ Ke7 5.Bxg8 Rxg8 6.Nd5+ Kd6 7.d4 exd4 8.Bf4+
1.e4e5
2.Nc3Nc6
3.Bc4Na5
4.Bxf7+Ke7
5.Bxg8Rxg8
6.Nd5+Kd6
7.d4exd4
8.Bf4+

How the Vienna Game: Bxf7 Sacrifice works

The Vienna Game: Bxf7 Sacrifice is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Vienna Game. In this line White wins decisive material by move 8, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.

The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5 4.Bxf7+ Ke7 5.Bxg8 Rxg8 6.Nd5+ Kd6 7.d4 exd4 8.Bf4+. 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 (Keizer - Kroes, Postal 1991). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as White or sidestep it as Black.

Practice this trap move-by-move

Open the Vienna Game: Bxf7 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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