Source Lichess
Black wins at least 2.2 more of every 100 games than it loses
how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident
At All Ratings, Tarrasch Defense: Classical Variation, Classical Tarrasch Gambit keeps Black's wins running +2.2% ahead of its losses at worst, 90% confident, from 3.7K 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 | Black Win | Draw | Black Loss | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1600-1799 | −35.5% | 37.6% | 6.4% | 56.1% | 85 |
| 1800-1999 | −13.0% | 45.3% | 4.6% | 50.1% | 397 |
| 2000-2199 | −3.6% | 48.3% | 5.3% | 46.4% | 871 |
| 2200-2499 | +1.9% | 50.4% | 4.9% | 44.7% | 1.9K |
| 2500+ | +13.8% | 57.3% | 6.9% | 35.8% | 425 |
At some ratings. Black comes out ahead at 2200+; at the other ratings we can see, the games do not show it paying.
Black wins 49.9% of Tarrasch Defense: Classical Variation, Classical Tarrasch Gambit games, draws 5.2% and loses 45.0%. That rests on 3.7K games from Lichess.
2500+. There Black wins at least 13.8 more of every 100 games than it loses (90% confident), its highest Edge at worst.
Blitz. For Black, the Edge at worst — how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident — is −3.6% in Blitz (2.0K games) and −19.6% in Rapid (113 games). In neither do the games show Black winning more than losing.
No. The first rating where the games do not show Black coming out ahead is 1800-1999 in Bullet and 1800-1999 in Blitz.
The Tarrasch Defense: Classical Variation, Classical Tarrasch Gambit is very sharp: 5.2% of its games are drawn, so 94.8% end with a winner.
At 2200+, where Black comes out ahead. At the other ratings we can see, the games do not show it paying.
As White, take the material, then develop fast, castle early, and trade pieces. Give the material back when doing so kills the attack. At 2200+, Black still comes out ahead in these games; at the other ratings we can see, the games do not show the gambit paying.
This rests on 3.7K 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.