Source Lichess
White wins at least 1.2 more of every 100 games than it loses
how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident
At All Ratings, Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Knight Sacrifice Line keeps White's wins running +1.2% ahead of its losses at worst, 90% confident, from 567K Lichess games. This gambit is playable but marginal. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
| Rating | Edge at worst | White Win | Draw | White Loss | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | +13.7% | 55.8% | 2.8% | 41.5% | 75K |
| 1000-1199 | +2.2% | 50.3% | 2.2% | 47.6% | 113K |
| 1200-1399 | +0.1% | 49.2% | 2.1% | 48.7% | 126K |
| 1400-1599 | −0.5% | 48.9% | 2.2% | 48.9% | 107K |
| 1600-1799 | −3.0% | 47.6% | 2.4% | 50.0% | 76K |
| 1800-1999 | −7.4% | 45.3% | 2.8% | 51.9% | 46K |
| 2000-2199 | −7.7% | 45.2% | 3.1% | 51.7% | 18K |
| 2200-2499 | −8.1% | 45.0% | 4.2% | 50.8% | 5.2K |
| 2500+ | −14.8% | 45.0% | 3.9% | 51.1% | 346 |
1400-1599 is where the games stop proving it. Below that, White comes out ahead; from there up, the evidence no longer shows it. Where the line sits changes with the clock, so set yours above and look again.
White wins 49.6% of Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Knight Sacrifice Line games, draws 2.4% and loses 48.1%. That rests on 567K games from Lichess.
0-999. There White wins at least 13.7 more of every 100 games than it loses (90% confident), its highest Edge at worst.
Rapid. For White, the Edge at worst — how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident — is −0.2% in Blitz (239K games) and +3.2% in Rapid (156K games).
Yes. The first rating where the games do not show White coming out ahead is 1600-1799 in Bullet, 1000-1199 in Blitz, 1200-1399 in Rapid and 1400-1599 in Classical.
The Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Knight Sacrifice Line is extremely sharp: 2.4% of its games are drawn, so 97.6% end with a winner.
Play it below 1400-1599. From there up, the games no longer show it paying. Where the line sits changes with the clock, so set yours above and look again.
As Black, take the material, then develop fast, castle early, and trade pieces. Give the material back when doing so kills the attack. At 1400-1599 and above, the games no longer show White coming out ahead with it; below that, they do.
This rests on 567K games from Lichess. Every figure carries the range it is in, 90% confident, and the table above shows how many games sit behind each rating and each clock — the fewer there are, the wider that range.