Caissa Codex
C94

Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense

Chess diagram: Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense after 9…Nb8

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

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Statistics from Lichess

138,628 games: White 47.3% / Draw 6.8% / Black 45.9%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer 123,959124K
Quiet Variation 7,3787,378
6,0016,001
861861
340340
3333
2323
77

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.39 White is slightly better

Best play: 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 a5

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense (ECO C94, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Closed, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 (9 moves).

In 138,628 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.3%, Black 45.9% and 6.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 10. d4, in 89% of those games.

It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer and Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense, Quiet Variation. In all, 5 named lines continue from it.

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How to play against the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense

10. d3 (Quiet Variation) scores best for White: 53.1%, with White winning 49.9% and Black 43.7% of 7,378 games. The most played answer, 10. d4, scores lowest: 50.5% in 124K games. Stockfish's first choice is 10. d4.

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

Variations (2)

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 9…Nb8, the position after Ruy Lopez: Closed also goes on to:

All 5 named lines that continue from here

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense (C94)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-closed-breyer-defense

https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-closed-breyer-defense