Final position — Black is winning
Traxler-Counter Gambit
Black wins in 11 moves with a decisive material gain. (Chess traps - Traxler-Counter Gambit - C57 - https://lichess.org/@/AbhiCricket)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Bc4 | Nf6 |
| 4. | Ng5 | Bc5 |
| 5. | Nxf7 | Bxf2+ |
| 6. | Kxf2 | Nxe4+ |
| 7. | Ke1 | Qh4+ |
| 8. | g3 | Nxg3 |
| 9. | hxg3 | Qxh1+ |
| 10. | Ke2 | Nd4+ |
| 11. | Kf2 | Qxd1 |
How the Traxler-Counter Gambit works
The Traxler-Counter Gambit is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Two Knights Defence. In this line Black wins decisive material by move 11, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from White.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+ 7.Ke1 Qh4+ 8.g3 Nxg3 9.hxg3 Qxh1+ 10.Ke2 Nd4+ 11.Kf2 Qxd1. 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.
This pattern is well known from master and correspondence play (Chess traps - Traxler-Counter Gambit - C57 - https://lichess.org/@/AbhiCricket). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as Black or sidestep it as White.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the Traxler-Counter Gambit 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.