Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Modern Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
335,160 games: White 39.8% / Draw 5.5% / Black 54.6%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Main Line | 229,843230K | |
| 37,19037K | ||
| 30,67431K | ||
| 13,51514K | ||
| 7,8077,807 | ||
| 3,7213,721 | ||
| 3,5593,559 | ||
| 2,5782,578 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 28, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.13 The position is about equal
Best play: 12. Re1 Bd6 13. d3 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3 Bxd3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 59% under 1400, 52% at 2200 and up and 49% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 2,049 | |
| 1400–1799 | 60K | |
| 1800–2199 | 233K | |
| 2200 and up | 54K | |
| Masters, over the board | 4,890 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Ding Liren
- Anand, V. – Carlsen, M.
- Vachier Lagrave, M. – Carlsen, M.
- Karjakin, S. – Carlsen, M.
- Anand, V. – Aronian, L.
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: Marshall Attack, Modern Variation (ECO C89, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 (11 moves).
In 335,160 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 39.8%, Black 54.6% and 5.5% were drawn. White's most played move here is 12. d4, in 69% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Main Line and Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Re3 Variation. In all, 4 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: Marshall Attack, Modern Variation
12. d3 scores best for White: 53.6%, with White winning 50.4% and Black 43.1% of 31K games. The most played answer, 12. d4, scores lowest: 41.9% in 230K games. Stockfish's first choice is 12. Re1.
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: Marshall Attack, Modern Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.01% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.018% (its peak: 0.021% in 2017).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.018% | 6,441 |
| 2017 | 0.021% | 11,663 |
| 2018 | 0.021% | 16,533 |
| 2019 | 0.017% | 20,946 |
| 2020 | 0.015% | 44,476 |
| 2021 | 0.012% | 48,011 |
| 2022 | 0.013% | 48,751 |
| 2023 | 0.012% | 46,976 |
| 2024 | 0.011% | 38,176 |
| 2025 | 0.01% | 35,112 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.011% | 11,906 |
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 (2)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Modern Variation (C89)”. Lichess data as of 28 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-marshall-attack-modern-variation