Italian Game
also known as: Giuoco Italiano
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4
Named after
Named for the Italian masters of the 16th–17th centuries — Polerio, Greco and their school — who first analyzed it deeply.
Origin
Among the oldest recorded openings: lines with Bc4 appear in the Göttingen manuscript (c. 1490) and dominate Greco's celebrated games (1620s).
The story
When chess's modern rules settled in the late 1400s, the Italians built the first great school of play, and their favorite attacking scheme aimed the bishop at f7 — the weakest point in Black's camp. Gioachino Greco's manuscript games, essentially the first chess bestsellers, spread these attacks across Europe. The Italian was eventually eclipsed by the Ruy Lopez for two centuries, then returned to the absolute elite in the 2010s when engines showed the quiet d3 systems were as rich as any Spanish.
Why it matters
3.Bc4 develops toward f7 and keeps every option open: the quiet Giuoco Piano, the romantic Evans Gambit, or the tactical chaos of the Two Knights. Today it is arguably the main line of 1.e4 e5 again — a 500-year-old opening back in fashion.
Notable games
- Greco's model attacks (1620s)
- Carlsen, Caruana and So reviving the Giuoco Pianissimo (2015–present)