What is a Clearance Sacrifice?

A Clearance Sacrifice is a tactical motif where a piece (often with a sacrifice) moves to vacate a square or open a line (file, rank, or diagonal) for a more powerful piece to use.

How does it differ from a Discovered Attack?

While similar, the primary goal of Clearance is to 'make room' for another piece to enter the attack, whereas a Discovered Attack uses the moving piece to unleash a hidden threat from behind.

Clearance Tactics in Chess – The Art of Getting Out of the Way

Clearance: The Art of Getting Out of the Way

Clearance is a tactical motif where you move a piece—often with a sacrifice—to open a critical square, file, or diagonal for another piece. It's the art of "making way" for a stronger threat. Mastering clearance sacrifices allows you to execute surprising and beautiful combinations.

🚧 Obstacle insight: Sometimes your own pieces are your worst enemies, blocking key squares. The "Clearance Sacrifice" is the tool advanced players use to open lines for a killing blow.

📘 The Complete Guide to Chess Tactics

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The Concept: Sometimes your own pieces get in the way of a winning attack. A Clearance tactic moves a piece (often sacrificing it) to "vacate" a square or "open" a line for a stronger piece.

Clearance Tactics: Typical Ideas and What to Look For

In the examples below, you’ll see how a clearance move works in practice: a piece steps away (often with a sacrifice) to vacate a key square or open a file, rank, or diagonal. Watch for the “blocker” being removed and the “beneficiary” piece that instantly gains a new line or entry point.

1. Diagonal Clearance

Papas vs. Oreopoulos

The Blocker: Knight on e4
The Beneficiary: Bishop on g2

1.Nxd6+
wins the Q by 1...Nbxd6 2.Bxd5+ or (1...Nfxd6 2.Bxd5+)

2. Square Clearance (Bishop)

Magem vs. Karpov

The Blocker: Bishop on g5
The Beneficiary: Queen on d8

1...Be3
2.Nxe3 Qg5 (threatens both Qg3++ and Qf4+)

3. Square Clearance (Rook)

Garcia Perez vs. van der Wiel

The Blocker: Rook on e5
The Beneficiary: Queen on e2

1.Rxf5!
Rxf5 (1...Rxe2 2.Rxf8+ Kg7 3.Rg8++) (1...Rxf5 2.Qe5+ Rxe5 3.Bf6 mate) 2.Qe5+ Rxe5 3.Bf6++

4. The Turton Clearance

Radulescu vs. Trojanescu

The Blocker: Bishop on e3
The Beneficiary: Queen on c1

3.Bb6!
1.Rxd7 Bxd7 2.Nf6+ Kh8 3.Bb6 Qd6 (3...Qxb6 4.Qh6) 4.Nce4

5. File Clearance

Euwe vs. Nestler

The Blocker: Rook on f5
The Beneficiary: Rook on c1

1.Rg5
and black resigned due to e.g. fxg5 (1...Ne8 2.Qh8+ Rg8 3.Qxg8#) (1...Nxe6 2.dxe6 Qb6+ 3.Kh1 Qg1+ 4.Kxg1 fxg5 5.Qh8+ Rg8 6.Rf1+ Ke8 7.Qxg8#) 2.Qh8+ Rg8 3.Rf1+ Ke8 4.Qxg8#

6. The "Vacuum" Sacrifice

Rombaldoni vs. Barillaro

The Blocker: Rook on h3
The Beneficiary: Queen on e3

1.Rxh7
Kxh7 2.Qh3+ Bh6 3.Qxh6+ Kxh6 4.Re3 Qxe5 5.Rh3+ Qh5 6.Rxh5+

7. Freeing the Line

Schuppler vs. Hoenig

The Blocker: Bishop on c1
The Beneficiary: Queen on d1

1.Bh6
Rxh6 2.Qxd4 exd4 3.Rfb1 Nd7 4.cxd7+ Rxd7 5.Rb8++

8. Bludgeoning Through

Polgar (J.) vs. Pliester

The Blocker: Rook on f5
The Beneficiary: Rook on f1

1.Rxf7
Nxf7 2.Rxf7 Kxf7 3.Nb6+ Kg6 4.Bh5+ Kxh5 5.Qf7+ and mates