Tree path 9 levels King's Pawn Game › King's Knight Opening › Normal Variation › Ruy Lopez › Morphy Defense › Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense › Ruy Lopez: Closed › Ruy Lopez: Closed › Ruy Lopez: Closed

C88

Ruy Lopez: Closed

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Overview

Ruy Lopez: Closed is a named branch in the Open Games group of chess theory, classified under ECO C88.

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

It is reached after 14 plies of play, with the move sequence 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O.

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

3 named variations grow from this line, including Anti-Marshall, Pilnik Variation, Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack.

In total, the branch covers 10 sub-variations across all depths.

Use the board to walk through every move, check how the position has scored on Lichess, or take it head-to-head against Stockfish.

ECO code: C88
Group: Open Games (C)
Plies: 14
Parent: Ruy Lopez: Closed
Direct variations: 3
Total in subtree: 10

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

1,487,864 games · White 46.6% / Draw 5.6% / Black 47.8%

Moves	Games	W / D / B
c3	939,406
a4	189,739
h3	174,900
d4	90,995
d3	70,650
Nc3	8,547
a3	7,005
Bd5	3,964

Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 02:59:09

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Variations (3)

Show all 10 sub-variations (full subtree)

Overview

Statistics from Lichess

Variations (3)

Related variations at the same level