Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense
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Statistics from Lichess
18,872,051 games · White 49.9% / Draw 5.5% / Black 44.6%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 13,366,171 | ||
| Ruy Lopez: Exchange Variation | 5,333,210 | |
| 128,313 | ||
| 16,015 | ||
| 11,126 | ||
| 4,738 | ||
| 3,575 | ||
| 2,986 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer · updated Sep 26, 2026
Overview
Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense (ECO C70, Open Games) is a variation of Ruy Lopez, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 — 3 moves.
In 18,872,051 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.9%, Black 44.6% and 5.5% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. Ba4, in 71% of those games.
It branches into 16 named variations; the most played are Ruy Lopez: Exchange Variation and Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Caro Variation. In all, 150 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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By rating
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 8.1M | |
| 1400–1799 | 12.3M | |
| 1800–2199 | 10.2M | |
| 2200 and up | 2.4M | |
| Masters, over the board | 116K |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Caruana, F.
- Caruana, F. – Carlsen, M.
- Caruana, F. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Ding Liren
- Anand, V. – Carlsen, M.
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
Variations (16)
- C70 Bird's Defense Deferred 4. Ba4 Nd4
- C68 Exchange Variation 4. Bxc6
- C78 Morphy Defense 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O
- C70 Alapin's Defense Deferred 4. Ba4 Bb4
- C77 Anderssen Variation 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3
- C77 Bayreuth Variation 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Bxc6
- C70 Caro Variation 4. Ba4 b5
- C70 Classical Defense Deferred 4. Ba4 Bc5
- C70 Cozio Defense 4. Ba4 Nge7
- C70 Fianchetto Defense Deferred 4. Ba4 g6
- C77 Jaffe Gambit 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. c3
- C77 Mackenzie Variation 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d4
- C71 Modern Steinitz Defense 4. Ba4 d6
- C70 Schliemann Defense Deferred 4. Ba4 f5
- C77 Tarrasch Variation 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Nc3
- C77 Wormald Attack 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Qe2
All 150 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
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