Source Lichess
Black isn't shown winning more often than losing at this level
how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident
At All Ratings, Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation, Cordel Gambit keeps Black's wins running −0.8% ahead of its losses at worst, 90% confident, from 13K Lichess games. The games don't show this gambit paying at this level. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
| Rating | Edge at worst | Black Win | Draw | Black Loss | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | −30.5% | 41.5% | 2.4% | 56.1% | 101 |
| 1000-1199 | −20.6% | 43.3% | 2.9% | 53.8% | 256 |
| 1200-1399 | −6.6% | 48.8% | 2.3% | 48.8% | 618 |
| 1400-1599 | −10.3% | 46.4% | 2.1% | 51.5% | 980 |
| 1600-1799 | −7.7% | 47.3% | 2.1% | 50.7% | 1.4K |
| 1800-1999 | −2.5% | 48.8% | 3.3% | 47.9% | 2.4K |
| 2000-2199 | −1.3% | 48.6% | 4.3% | 47.0% | 3.2K |
| 2200-2499 | +1.9% | 49.1% | 6.5% | 44.4% | 3.2K |
| 2500+ | −5.6% | 48.2% | 3.6% | 48.2% | 838 |
At some ratings. Black comes out ahead at 2200-2499; at the other ratings we can see, the games do not show it paying. Where it pays changes with the clock, so set yours above and look again.
Black wins 48.3% of Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation, Cordel Gambit games, draws 4.1% and loses 47.6%. That rests on 13K games from Lichess.
2200-2499. There Black wins at least 1.9 more of every 100 games than it loses (90% confident), its highest Edge at worst.
Blitz. For Black, the Edge at worst — how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident — is +0.5% in Blitz (7.2K games) and −5.7% in Rapid (1.5K games).
Yes. The first rating where the games do not show Black coming out ahead is 1000-1199 in Bullet, 0-999 in Blitz and 1200-1399 in Rapid.
The Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation, Cordel Gambit is extremely sharp: 4.1% of its games are drawn, so 95.9% end with a winner.
At 2200-2499, where Black comes out ahead. At the other ratings we can see, the games do not show it paying. Where it pays changes with the clock, so set yours above and look again.
As White, take the material, then develop fast, castle early, and trade pieces. Give the material back when doing so kills the attack. At 2200-2499, Black still comes out ahead in these games; at the other ratings we can see, the games do not show the gambit paying.
This rests on 13K games from Lichess. Every figure carries the range it is in, 90% confident, and the table above shows how many games sit behind each rating and each clock — the fewer there are, the wider that range.