Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Beverwijk Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
1,941,252 games: White 54.8% / Draw 4.1% / Black 41.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation, Zukertort Gambit | 675,632676K | |
| 371,003371K | ||
| 368,379368K | ||
| 187,567188K | ||
| 148,981149K | ||
| 96,95097K | ||
| 53,64454K | ||
| 14,89215K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 26, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.56 White is slightly better
Best play: 5. Nxe5 Nxe4 6. Nf3 a6 7. Bxc6 dxc6 8. Qe2 Qe7 9. d4 Bd6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 46% under 1400, 45% at 2200 and up and 43% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 911K | |
| 1400–1799 | 1.6M | |
| 1800–2199 | 1M | |
| 2200 and up | 81K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,213 |
Master games
- Anand, V. – Topalov, V.
- Gashimov, V. – Topalov, V.
- Shirov, A. – Topalov, V.
- Harikrishna, P. – Nakamura, H.
- Leko, P. – Anand, V.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Beverwijk Variation (ECO C65, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Bc5 (4 moves).
In 1,941,252 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 54.8%, Black 41.1% and 4.1% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. c3, in 35% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation, Zukertort Gambit. In all, 3 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Beverwijk Variation
5. Nxe5 scores best for White: 64.5%, with White winning 62.5% and Black 33.5% of 149K games. The most played, 5. c3, scores 59.9% in 676K games, and 5. Re1 scores lowest: 53.7%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5. Nxe5.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Beverwijk Variation peaked in 2020 at 0.084% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.065% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.073% | 26,083 |
| 2017 | 0.077% | 42,523 |
| 2018 | 0.083% | 65,390 |
| 2019 | 0.081% | 101,214 |
| 2020 | 0.084% | 246,123 |
| 2021 | 0.081% | 317,691 |
| 2022 | 0.077% | 290,854 |
| 2023 | 0.074% | 277,145 |
| 2024 | 0.07% | 251,915 |
| 2025 | 0.065% | 225,508 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.064% | 70,143 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (1)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Beverwijk Variation (C65)”. Lichess data as of 26 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-berlin-defense-beverwijk-variation