Opening a game wellStep 1 of 6
Occupy the centre
Why the four middle squares decide everything — and what "take the centre" does not mean.
Put a knight in the middle of the board, on e4. Count its squares: eight. Now put it in the corner, on a1. It has two.
That is the whole idea of the centre. The four middle squares — e4, d4, e5, d5 — are where your pieces see furthest and travel fastest. A piece in the centre works; a piece on the edge waits.
So the two most played first moves in the world are 1.e4 and 1.d4. They are not fashion: they take a central square with a pawn, and at the same time they open a diagonal for a bishop and air for the queen. One move, three effects.
What “occupy the centre” does not mean: pushing every pawn forward. Pawns that go too far cannot come back, and they become targets. Two well-supported pawns in the centre beat four pawns stranded in enemy territory.
Demonstration — use the arrows
Use the ← and → arrow keys, or click a move in the list.
Move list
- 1.
Your turn
Your turn
White to move
Loading the board…
Move1 / 1
Attempts0
Play your move on the board: drag a piece, or tap it and then tap its destination square.
Start