The Worlds Bitterest Football Rivalries...

With tomorrows Manchester United v Liverpool match too look forward to, I though I'd look through some of the football worlds most competitive rivalries. I hope you enjoy...

Honduras v El Salvador

A soldier preparing for the "Soccer War"

Well these two countries went to war with each other and guess what they named this war? The "Soccer War". It was early 1969 and these two countries already had tense relations but these tensions were about to boil over when they had a three match playoff for World Cup Qualification with each other.

The first match between the two nations was in Honduras and there were disturbances which broke out between the two fans but nothing major. The second match in El Salvador was where things really got heated, Honduran fans were attacked, the Honduran flag and national anthem were insulted by Salvadoran fans.

These incidents in this match escalated the situation between the two Central American nations. Salvadoran residents in Honduras were attacked this became so common that the number of incidents aren't even known. Tens of thousands of Salvadorans fled the country. The media in both countries fanned the flames and eventually on 27th June 1969, Honduras broke diplomatic relations with El Salvador.

The following month the countries went to war with each other. The deciding game was held on neutral ground in Mexico, there were 5,000 Mexican police armed with clubs there to separate the fans. El Salvador won 3-2.

North Korea v South Korea

There might be a few million land mines separating them, but at least they can shake hands...

These two nations are divided by the most heavily mined area in the world they have also fought one of the most violent wars since World War II and also to top it all off both nations are technically still at war as their was never an official armistice... Now that's the history done its time for the football...

You could imagine the look on Sepp Blatters face when these two teams ended up in the same group for their World Cup Qualifiers. The first meeting was scheduled to be in Pyongyang, North Korea, there was only one problem with this. The North Korean authorities said that they wouldn't allow any South Korean flags in the stadium. A spokesman for South Korea said "North Korea wants us to use a joint Korean flag and anthem … instead of allowing us to use our own." But according to FIFA rules, the flags and national anthems of both participating countries must be used in international matches.

So what did FIFA do? They moved the match to Shanghai, China so both sides could have their own flags and chant their own songs.

Now time for part two of this saga, this time it was the second match which was in Seoul, South Korea. The match was played and South Korea were the victors by a single goal. After the match there were accusations from the North that the South had deliberately poisoned the food of the North Korean team. In a statement released by North Korean Central News Agency it was stated "It was beyond all doubt that the incident was a product of a deliberate act perpetrated by adulterated foodstuff as they [the players] could not get up all of a sudden just before the match,". This statement was released after the North Korean coach complained of similar issues.

The South Korean football authorities responded by saying "The statement sets a high political tone, not about the sport itself. There's no need to respond to it," Just by looking back at these two fixtures it shows how bitter the rivalry is between the two Korea's. 

Rangers v Celtic

Things get heated in the Old Firm derby

Well these two sides put sectarianism on the map in British football. The two sides are split by their fan base with Rangers being supported mainly by the Protestant community and Celtic's following being made up of Irish Roman Catholics.The reason for this is because after the Irish potato famine Irish Catholic immigrants to Scotland created Glasgow Celtic Football Club.

One of the worst acts of football violence was between fans from these sides after the Scottish Cup Final in 1980 which Celtic won 1-0. There was a major pitch invasion and there were battles between the fans and this match was a major reason to why alcohol was banned from Scottish Grounds.

Rangers until 1989 had a no Catholic policy with regards to their players, in modern football this kind of policy is unheard of. Celtic have also had this kind of sectarian discrimination with former player and current manager Neil Lennon (who is Protestant and played for Northern Ireland) being abused by his own sides supporters. The rivalry is so intense that fans have to walk to and from the stadiums using different routes as some areas are seen as unsafe depending on the team you support.

On the football side of things, no two teams have dominated their domestic football as much as Rangers and Celtic have. Between them they have won 95 of the 114 Scottish titles available since 1890. I don't think there has been a duopoly in world football like this.



Barcelona v Real Madrid

Anti Madrid slogan above Barcelona club flag

Now this the match they call "El Clasico", it has been describe a Spanish football expert as "a re-enactment of the Spanish civil war". The two clubs' rivalry goes back to the days of the Spanish civil war and General Francos fascist government. Franco did his best to ban all symbols of regionalism in Spain but Barcelona stood out as a symbol of Catalan independence.

Barcelona has always been a symbol of Catalan pride and identity and in this it became opposition for the centralising tendencies of Madrid. Madrid is considered by many in Spain as the club of the establishment whilst Barcelona is perceived by some in Spain as "més que un club" (more than a club) to Catalans as well as to progressives and left-leaning Spaniards across the country.

Football violence between the two clubs' fans has been minimal but the president of Barcelona Josep Sunyol was killed by Franco's security police for political reasons. There were also rumors after a 11-1 defeat Barcelona suffered at the hands of Madrid that the Barcelona players were threatened by Franco's secret police although these stories have never been confirmed.

In another famous and more recent incident between the two clubs, Luis Figo who moved from Barca to Los Merengues had a pigs head thrown at him by a group of Barcelona fans at the Nou Camp during a match.

Al Ahly v Zamalek

Arab El Clasico

The two clubs are the most successful are the most successful in Egyptian and for that matter African history. Their rivalry is also one of the most bitter in world football, their match is possibly the biggest spectacle of the Arab football calender. Both clubs are based in Cairo and their fans rivalry is so strong that even the traffic on match days is redirected to ensure the fans don't cross paths...

The matches are so intense and competitive the Egyptian FA bring in foreign referees for this game. This match has also been dubbed by FIFA as "One of the world's fiercest footballing rivalries". The games get so heated that they have been abandoned four times most recently in 1999. The games are such a risk that they are no longer played at the stadiums of the two teams but on neutral territory.

Another time a player for Zamalek was sent off two minutes into a game for a tackle from behind. In response to this his teammates walked off the pitch and refused to allow the game to continue.

Conclusion

Well I hope that put the Manchester derby or the North London Derby into perspective? Anyway as usual thanks for taking the time to read...