Tree path 5 levels King's Pawn Game › King's Knight Opening › Normal Variation › Ruy Lopez › Classical Variation

C64

Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation

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Overview

Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation is a named branch in the Open Games group of chess theory, classified under ECO C64.

The Open Games group covers open games — classical 1.e4 e5 openings where both sides contest the centre directly with pawns.

The line arises from 6 plies — specifically the moves 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Bc5.

In the opening tree, this line branches off from Ruy Lopez, part of the broader King's Pawn Game system.

3 named variations grow from this line, including Ruy Lopez: Classical Defense, Zaitsev Variation, Central Variation, Spanish Wing Gambit.

Together the deeper variations number 7 across the full subtree.

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ECO code: C64
Group: Open Games (C)
Plies: 6
Parent: Ruy Lopez
Direct variations: 3
Total in subtree: 7

This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.

Statistics from Lichess

7,597,825 games · White 50.3% / Draw 4.3% / Black 45.4%

Moves	Games	W / D / B
O-O	3,343,524
c3	1,980,347
Bxc6	1,303,063
d3	383,504
Nc3	327,630
Nxe5	145,178
h3	24,040
b4	20,686

Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:28:06

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Variations (3)

Show all 7 sub-variations (full subtree)

Overview

Statistics from Lichess

Variations (3)

Related variations at the same level