We analyse the force balance on a cylindrical drop in a Hele-Shaw cell, subjected to a Marangoni flow caused by a surface tension gradient. Depth-averaged Stokes equations, called Brinkman equations, are introduced and a general closed form solution is obtained. The validity of the averaging procedure is ascertained by considering a linear surface tension gradient acting on a cylindrical flattened drop. The Marangoni-driven flow field and resulting force predicted by the Brinkman model are seen to match well a full three-dimensional direct numerical simulation. A closed form expression of the force acting on the drop is obtained, calculated from contributions due to the normal viscous stress, tangential viscous stress, and pressure fields, integrated on the drop perimeter. This expression is used to predict the force balance when a stationary droplet is submitted to both a carrier flow and a Marangoni flow. We show that previous results in the literature had underestimated by a factor two the Marangoni-induced force. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.