Final position — White delivers mate
Vienna Game: Bxf7 Sacrifice & Mate
White wins in 9 moves by checkmate. (Luttles - Miller, USA 1964)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nc3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Bc4 | d6 |
| 4. | f4 | exf4 |
| 5. | Nf3 | Bg4 |
| 6. | O-O | Ne5 |
| 7. | Nxe5 | Bxd1 |
| 8. | Bxf7+ | Ke7 |
| 9. | Nd5# |
How the Vienna Game: Bxf7 Sacrifice & Mate works
The Vienna Game: Bxf7 Sacrifice & Mate is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Vienna Game. In this line White delivers checkmate on move 9, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bc4 d6 4.f4 exf4 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.O-O Ne5 7.Nxe5 Bxd1 8.Bxf7+ Ke7 9.Nd5#. 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 (Luttles - Miller, USA 1964). 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 & Mate 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.