10 Most Underrated Derbies in World Football - Part One (10-6)
As the media are over-hyping the upcoming 'North West' Derby between Manchester United and Liverpool, Quirky Football explores the 10 Most Underrated Derbies in World Football. You won't find any mainstream media favourites such as El Clasico and the Merseyside Derby in this list.
10 - Real Sociedad v Athletic Bilbao (The Basque Derby)
We often get told that Liverpool v Everton is the 'friendly derby' but the most anticipated game in the Basque region of Spain certainly goes above and beyond in a show of local unity. The only friendly natured derby in this list puts Basque identity as the centre of it's experience. It's tradition that both teams parade the Basque Flag together (as pictured) and both sets of supporters go on a 'Kalijera' (a supporters' parade from the city centre to the stadium) in a celebration of Basque football and culture.
The also have a 'Bertso-Derbia' a singing and poetry contest between the supporters pre-game.
Both sets of supporters usually mingle inside and outside of the stadium together on matchday. There are 49 kilometres (30 miles) separating both clubs.
Bilbao have currently most wins between the pair, winning 75 out of the 179 derbies.
Controversially in the late 80's and early 90's, both sets of supporters hung out banners supporting the Basque-separatist and terrorist organisation ETA. Many see the game as a show of Basque defiance against the rest of Spain and an ample opportunity to show their regions unity.
9 - PEC Zwolle v Go Ahead Eagles (Ijsselderby)
A little known derby outside of Holland, the 'Ijsselderby' is a fierce rivalry that deserves more exposure. 34 Kilometres (21 miles) separate the towns of Zwolle (home to PEC) and Deventer- the home of Go Ahead Eagles. Both Club locations lie on the River Ijssel with Zwolle in the North and Go Ahead (Deventer) further south.
The Rivalry sparked into life in the 90s when both played each other numerous times in the Eerste Divisie (the Dutch Second Tier). The derby is famous for explosive contests both on and off the field. In September 2017 as some Go Ahead fans were on the return journey from an away game at FC Emmen, a mass brawl broke out between PEC and Eagles hooligans on Zwolle train station with 46 suspects arrested. This surprisingly made less headlines than an incident that occurred in October 2016. After PEC beat Go Ahead 3-1 in Zwolle, an Eagles supporter defecated on the Zwolle pitch in disgust at his own teams performance and in a show of hatred for his rival club. This made national headlines and fuelled more fire into the sheer disdain the clubs have for each other.
After 100 games, PEC Zwolle currently have most victories with 47 wins compared to Go Ahead Eagles' 38. Currently both clubs are in different divisions with PEC in the top league, The Eredivisie. Go Ahead Eagles currently sit 3rd in the tier below.
8 - Kaizer Chiefs v Orlando Pirates (The Soweto Derby)
We hear of fierce derbies across Europe and South America in the mainstream football media but we are missing out on this fantastic showpiece of South African Football - The Chiefs v The Pirates.
Both based in the Soweto district of Johannesburg, this rivalry was created when a former Orlando player Kaizer Motaung created a separate club 'Kaizer XI' which evolved into the Kaizer Chiefs. Motaung left Orlando after he saw too much infighting and injustice in the Pirates hierarchy during his spell with the club. After leaving South Africa to play in the United States, he started his new project when he returned to his homeland.
80,000 plus sell outs are part and parcel of this fixture. The first Soweto derby was contested in 1970. Orlando fans resent the fact that the Kaizer's turned their back on their original club, while The Chiefs see the Pirates as their corrupt forefathers. Currently after 70 games, the The Chiefs have the better of the derby record with 25 wins to Orlando's 21. No Johannesburg Police are allowed to take leave on the day of the game with 80% of it's staff working in or around Soweto on matchday.
7 - Al Ahly v Zamalek (Cairo Derby)
This match is arguably between the most successful clubs in Egypt and in Africa. Also one of the most violent. Zamalek fans are usually seen as the middle and upper classes who co-operated with foreign forces under British Colonialism. Ah Aly fans are working class nationalists. Clashes between both clubs have become more frequent since the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, as Ah Ahly's core fanbase of nationalist and religious fundamentalists seized power from the more liberal regime supported by Zamalek supporters.
Ah Ahly have been the most successful in clashes between the clubs with 66 wins out of 160 fixtures. In Africa alone over 2.4 billion people tune in to watch the game on television and it is the most watched sporting fixture on the continent. In the 1970's violent clashes between the players and supporters resulted in the Egyptian League being abandoned on multiple occasions. Now there are no home and away fixtures between the clubs with all matches to be played at neutral venues due to both sets of fans trashing their opponents grounds. Think the Glasgow Derby is bad? This is pure hatred.
6 - Blackburn v Burnley (East Lancashire Derby)
Also known of the 'Cotton Mills Derby' this is the most underrated derby in English football. 12 Miles apart, this fierce hatred has been there from the very beginning. Both teams were founder members of the Football League and it the fires between them have no sign of burning out.
The friction between the clubs started in the 1890s when Blackburn complained to the Football League that Burnley were using ineligible Scottish players. Up until March 2014, Blackburn had preserved a 35 year unbeaten record against the club they call 'The Dingles' (derogatory term spawned from the interbreeding family in Emmerdale). Danny Ings scored the goal to break this curse as Burnley won 2-1 away at Ewood Park. Due to the massive hostilities between both sets of fans, you can only attend the game as an away supporter if you travel on a official club coach that is police escorted from ground to ground. Burnley currently have the bragging rights as they sit in the division above Rovers and also have won more matches head to head - Burnley 48 to Blackburn's 45.
The Next Article will discuss the other Five Derbies that we deem vastly underrated.
Matt Murphy 2018
10 - Real Sociedad v Athletic Bilbao (The Basque Derby)
We often get told that Liverpool v Everton is the 'friendly derby' but the most anticipated game in the Basque region of Spain certainly goes above and beyond in a show of local unity. The only friendly natured derby in this list puts Basque identity as the centre of it's experience. It's tradition that both teams parade the Basque Flag together (as pictured) and both sets of supporters go on a 'Kalijera' (a supporters' parade from the city centre to the stadium) in a celebration of Basque football and culture.
The also have a 'Bertso-Derbia' a singing and poetry contest between the supporters pre-game.
Both sets of supporters usually mingle inside and outside of the stadium together on matchday. There are 49 kilometres (30 miles) separating both clubs.
Bilbao have currently most wins between the pair, winning 75 out of the 179 derbies.
Controversially in the late 80's and early 90's, both sets of supporters hung out banners supporting the Basque-separatist and terrorist organisation ETA. Many see the game as a show of Basque defiance against the rest of Spain and an ample opportunity to show their regions unity.
9 - PEC Zwolle v Go Ahead Eagles (Ijsselderby)
A little known derby outside of Holland, the 'Ijsselderby' is a fierce rivalry that deserves more exposure. 34 Kilometres (21 miles) separate the towns of Zwolle (home to PEC) and Deventer- the home of Go Ahead Eagles. Both Club locations lie on the River Ijssel with Zwolle in the North and Go Ahead (Deventer) further south.
The Rivalry sparked into life in the 90s when both played each other numerous times in the Eerste Divisie (the Dutch Second Tier). The derby is famous for explosive contests both on and off the field. In September 2017 as some Go Ahead fans were on the return journey from an away game at FC Emmen, a mass brawl broke out between PEC and Eagles hooligans on Zwolle train station with 46 suspects arrested. This surprisingly made less headlines than an incident that occurred in October 2016. After PEC beat Go Ahead 3-1 in Zwolle, an Eagles supporter defecated on the Zwolle pitch in disgust at his own teams performance and in a show of hatred for his rival club. This made national headlines and fuelled more fire into the sheer disdain the clubs have for each other.
After 100 games, PEC Zwolle currently have most victories with 47 wins compared to Go Ahead Eagles' 38. Currently both clubs are in different divisions with PEC in the top league, The Eredivisie. Go Ahead Eagles currently sit 3rd in the tier below.
8 - Kaizer Chiefs v Orlando Pirates (The Soweto Derby)
We hear of fierce derbies across Europe and South America in the mainstream football media but we are missing out on this fantastic showpiece of South African Football - The Chiefs v The Pirates.
Both based in the Soweto district of Johannesburg, this rivalry was created when a former Orlando player Kaizer Motaung created a separate club 'Kaizer XI' which evolved into the Kaizer Chiefs. Motaung left Orlando after he saw too much infighting and injustice in the Pirates hierarchy during his spell with the club. After leaving South Africa to play in the United States, he started his new project when he returned to his homeland.
80,000 plus sell outs are part and parcel of this fixture. The first Soweto derby was contested in 1970. Orlando fans resent the fact that the Kaizer's turned their back on their original club, while The Chiefs see the Pirates as their corrupt forefathers. Currently after 70 games, the The Chiefs have the better of the derby record with 25 wins to Orlando's 21. No Johannesburg Police are allowed to take leave on the day of the game with 80% of it's staff working in or around Soweto on matchday.
7 - Al Ahly v Zamalek (Cairo Derby)
This match is arguably between the most successful clubs in Egypt and in Africa. Also one of the most violent. Zamalek fans are usually seen as the middle and upper classes who co-operated with foreign forces under British Colonialism. Ah Aly fans are working class nationalists. Clashes between both clubs have become more frequent since the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, as Ah Ahly's core fanbase of nationalist and religious fundamentalists seized power from the more liberal regime supported by Zamalek supporters.
Ah Ahly have been the most successful in clashes between the clubs with 66 wins out of 160 fixtures. In Africa alone over 2.4 billion people tune in to watch the game on television and it is the most watched sporting fixture on the continent. In the 1970's violent clashes between the players and supporters resulted in the Egyptian League being abandoned on multiple occasions. Now there are no home and away fixtures between the clubs with all matches to be played at neutral venues due to both sets of fans trashing their opponents grounds. Think the Glasgow Derby is bad? This is pure hatred.
6 - Blackburn v Burnley (East Lancashire Derby)
Also known of the 'Cotton Mills Derby' this is the most underrated derby in English football. 12 Miles apart, this fierce hatred has been there from the very beginning. Both teams were founder members of the Football League and it the fires between them have no sign of burning out.
The friction between the clubs started in the 1890s when Blackburn complained to the Football League that Burnley were using ineligible Scottish players. Up until March 2014, Blackburn had preserved a 35 year unbeaten record against the club they call 'The Dingles' (derogatory term spawned from the interbreeding family in Emmerdale). Danny Ings scored the goal to break this curse as Burnley won 2-1 away at Ewood Park. Due to the massive hostilities between both sets of fans, you can only attend the game as an away supporter if you travel on a official club coach that is police escorted from ground to ground. Burnley currently have the bragging rights as they sit in the division above Rovers and also have won more matches head to head - Burnley 48 to Blackburn's 45.
The Next Article will discuss the other Five Derbies that we deem vastly underrated.
Matt Murphy 2018
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