Ruy Lopez
Also called Spanish Opening, Spanish Game.
White attacks the knight that defends e5, building slow, lasting pressure.
After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5, the bishop hits the knight that guards Black’s e5 pawn. The threat is not immediate, but the pressure lasts for many moves.
It is one of the oldest and most studied openings, played at every level.
New to chess? The examples here use it. Play your first moves (five minutes), then learn chess from the beginning, one short lesson at a time.
Want more? Puzzles on this from real games, on Lichess, free and with no account. They are not counted in your progress here.
Learn and practise it
- Lesson: A map of the openings