Spanish opening (Chess)

The Ruy Lopez (; Spanish: [ˈruj ˈlopeθ]), also called the Spanish Opening or Spanish Game, is a chess opening beginning with the moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 White develops the bishop to the active square b5 (the so-called "Spanish bishop"), attacking the knight that defends Black's e-pawn. Recommended by the 16th century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura, it is still regularly played in top-level competition. The theory of the Ruy Lopez is the most extensively developed of all Open Games; some lines have been analysed well beyond move thirty. At nearly every move there are many reasonable alternatives, and most have been deeply explored. In the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings (ECO), the opening is classified under codes C60 to C99.