15 Fiercest Rivalries in World Football [Ranked]

There is nothing in football quite like a rivalry. Whether it be the two best teams in a specific country or two sides looking to secure bragging rights in the same city, rivalries are something that make the sport even better.

Whether it be a Premier League classic or an ill-tempered Serie A tie, fans of both teams look out for the dates of these encounters with particular enthusiasm as soon as the fixture lists are published, and the result means so much more than just the final score and the potential three points.

Some rivalries, though, are more deeply-rooted than others and have gone back generations, way back beyond the years of the majority of fans currently sitting in the stands. In this article, GIVEMESPORT will be looking at what we believe are the top 15 fiercest derbies in the beautiful game, even when the ties are not so ‘beautiful’ on the pitch.

Ranking factors

In order to come up with this list, the following factors have been taken into consideration:

• Longevity
• Crowd Trouble
• Football Quality
• Tension Between the Clubs
• Success of Both Teams

15 Ajax vs Feyenoord

Netherlands

The rivalry between Amsterdam and Rotterdam dates back to the 13th century, and the battles between Ajax and Feyenoord are the latest manifestation. The former are perceived as the artists, while Feyenoord are from a more working-class background, making this a clash of cultures as well as football teams.

Such is the hostility between the two sets of supporters, away fans were banned from travelling to the fixture between 2009 and 2014, with Ajax preventing their fanbase from making the trip to De Kuip for a further three years until 2017. ‘De Godenzonen’ are currently enjoying the better of things on the pitch, having lost just two of their last 10 games against Feyenoord.

14 AC Milan vs Inter Milan

Italy

AC Milan vs Inter Milan may not quite be the spectacle it was during the 2000s, but the supporters are still always well up for the meeting when it comes round each year. Neither club has to travel to face the other as they both play their football in the San Siro, one of the most famous stadiums in world football.

The two teams that make up the Milan derby have 19 league titles to their names, although Inter look likely to be the first to make it to 20 as they lead the way in the 2023/24 season. The men in black and red have plenty to brag about in their own right, however, as the Rossoneri are one of the most successful clubs in European competition, having lifted the European Cup/Champions League trophy seven times. Football is one of the many passions that run through the city and more than 200 games have been played between the two Italian giants since Inter were founded in 1908.

13 Flamengo vs Fluminense

Brazil

Brazil is a footballing hotbed, and Rio de Janeiro encompasses that like no other city. Botafogo and Vasco de Gama are major players in Rio, but Flamengo and Fluminense only have eyes for each other in terms of their biggest rivals.

Unlike other games on the list, violence between supporters takes a back seat, but that does not mean the fans do not fiercely support their respective teams. In 1963, the 0-0 draw at the Maracana – where both sides play their home games – set the world record for the biggest crowd at a club match, with 194,603 people said to have been in attendance. This hard-fought clash has been played over 430 times, with six red cards dished out in four meetings in 2022 alone.

12 Olympiacos vs Panathinaikos

Greece

Any match-up nicknamed the ‘Derby of the Eternal Enemies’ must have a bit of bite. Again, the class separation plays a prominent role, with Panathinaikos being the team of the rich and Olympiacos that of the poor. However, supporters from all backgrounds now support both teams.

Having met over 200 times since 1930, these sides have won almost 80% of all Greek league titles between them. Even when the basketball and volleyball divisions of ‘Thrylos’ and the ‘Greens’ meet, expect plenty of violence and aggravation between fans. Unsurprisingly, this rivalry is well-known as one of the most intense globally, with the BBC even naming it ‘Europe’s maddest derby’ in 2014.

11 Manchester United vs Liverpool

England

Manchester United and Liverpool are known as the two greatest English football clubs of all time. There is no love lost when it comes to the two fan bases as the players on the pitch battle to be seen as the outright best. Both clubs have enjoyed their own spells of dominance over their long histories, but rarely have they both been right at the top of their games at the same time.

No matter what position one team finds themselves in, the levels are always elevated in the biggest rivalry England has to offer. Fixtures between the two sides often require altered kick-off times to ensure the police are able to keep any potential trouble to a minimum between the supporters of the iconic clubs. There is only one league title between them, with Manchester United boasting 20 to Liverpool’s 19.

10 Borussia Dortmund vs Schalke 04

Germany

From its origins between the wars to the present day, the rivalry between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04 has never ceased to grow. But unlike many other rivalries, this one is mainly due to the fact that the two clubs are geographically close – only 40km separate the two Rhineland cities.

Both teams have had their moments of glory in their respective histories, although recent results tend to favour the Scwartz-Gelben side – Schalke now play in the antechamber of German football. Yet the antagonism between the two foes has never eased, and there are plenty of anecdotes to be found in their encounters.

9 Olympique Lyonnais vs AS Saint-Etienne

France

In France, the rivalry between Olympique Lyonnais and AS Saint-Etienne is certainly like no other. Situated 60km from each other, the two cities are locked in a social war that goes back several centuries. While the former is reputedly more middle-class (Lyon), the latter is more working-class and working-class.

This clash of cultures is particularly evident in the tifos made by the ultra of the two clubs during their clashes, each referring to their respective local pride, and in the various songs sung by the stands. Today, the rivalry is such that opposing supporters are regularly banned from attending matches.

8 Galatasaray vs Fenerbahce

Turkey

Turkish fans have long had a reputation for fervorous support, and the ‘Intercontinental Derby’ between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce is a crucial contributor to that perception. Dating back to 1909, the rivalry almost ended before it had even really begun, with the idea of a merger mooted before being scrapped just four years later.

‘Fener’ and ‘Gala’ are Turkey’s most successful clubs, meaning matches between the two have regularly decided the winner of major trophies. Both hail from Istanbul, but violence between supporters is regular throughout the build-up to games.

Perhaps the most iconic moment in the fixture’s history came in 1996, when Galatasaray manager Graeme Souness planted a club flag in the middle of the Fenerbahce pitch in the first leg of the Turkish Cup Final. Given the incident led to a huge riot, the Scot has since admitted it was not his finest hour.

7 Lazio vs Roma

Italy

The ‘Derby della Capitale’ is arguably Italy’s biggest game, at least from a supporters’ point of view. This clash is one of the more peculiar among the others on this list, as both sides play their home matches at the Stadio Olimpico in the capital city. First taking place in 1929, the game has occurred almost 200 times with Roma holding a clear advantage, having won more matches than the ‘Biancocelesti’.

The hatred between the teams has been on full display throughout the years, with supporters desperate for bragging rights in the Italian capital. The low point of this derby was perhaps reached on March 24th 2004, when the game was abandoned shortly after half-time after a riot broke out in the crowd. Fights then spilled out into the streets surrounding the stadium. As with several other match-ups, politics and religion play their part.

6 Nacional vs Penarol

Uruguay

South American football players are known to be fiery in nature when on the pitch, and their fans are no different. This is why the fixture known as the Uruguayan Clasico ranks so high on this list. Penarol and Nacional are two of the most successful clubs in the country and have shared 99 of the 119 league titles that have been on offer (Nacional: 48, Penarol: 51).

Matches between the two teams are usually held at a neutral venue – the 40,000-capacity Estadio Centenario – and it’s the visual displays of support that each side is shown by their fans that would give anyone goosebumps. Massive flags, pyrotechnics, flares and many more methods of backing the players on the pitch are on full display in one of the oldest rivalries in world football.

5 Al Ahly vs Zamalek

Egypt

The only African match-up on this list, Al Ahly and Zamalek are both located in Egypt’s capital, Cairo. The North African country has a population of just over 100 million, yet encounters between the two sides regularly attract a domestic TV audience of around 50 million.

GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Al Ahly are the most successful club in world football, having lifted 121 trophies in their long and storied history.

Fan clashes at a meeting during the 1971/72 season led to the cancellation of the remainder of the Egyptian campaign, and fights between supporters are common. Al Ahly are the most successful of the two teams, having won 43 league titles to 14, while they have picked up 11 CAF Champions Leagues to five. Zamalek, though, are still the second-most successful side domestically and continentally and are one of the few teams with a constant chance of halting Al Ahly’s dominance.

4 Partizan Belgrade vs Red Star Belgrade

Serbia

The Večiti derbi, as it is known in Serbia, is one of the hottest derbies in Europe – if not the world. A rivalry between Red Star Belgrade and Partizan Belgrade, the country’s two most successful clubs (10 titles to 8 in the Serbian championship alone, inaugurated in 2006), whose antagonism has its roots in the middle of the 20th century (the two clubs were founded in 1945), driven by political, social and cultural issues.

A meeting that is regularly marked by the violence of its confrontations and the numerous disturbances caused for the occasion. After 173 meetings, Red Star have won 68 times, while Partizan have won 49 times (and drawn 56).

3 Barcelona vs Real Madrid

Spain

While Barcelona and Real Madrid don’t share the same city, the two giants of Spanish football are part of one of the most intense rivalries on the planet. The supporters are always well up for El Clasico, which dates back to the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s.

Perhaps the most recent example of crowds stepping over the line came in 2002 as the famous clubs met at Camp Nou. One of few men to ever move from Barcelona to Real Madrid, Luis Figo, took to the pitch and was met by a hostile atmosphere which famously included a pig’s head being thrown in his direction. The football on display between the two teams has been wonderful to watch over the years, with some of the best El Clasico’s occurring in the past 20 years.

2 Celtic vs Rangers

Scotland

Celtic and Rangers represent opposite sides of almost every divide imaginable in Glasgow, Scotland’s second city. The former’s supporters are generally Catholic, republican and socialist, while the latter’s fans are protestant, loyalist and conservative. While Celtic fans wave the Irish tricolour, their Rangers counterparts raise the Union Jack.

The two clubs, therefore, play a massive role in society, especially as they continue to dominate the country’s footballing landscape. Between them, they have won 107 league titles, while the rest of Scotland’s teams have won 19 combined. Given the first recorded meeting taking place in 1888, it is one of the oldest derbies on the planet and, with so much more on the line than just football, one of the fiercest.

1 Boca Juniors vs River Plate

Argentina

Ask any supporter around the world what games they would most like to see before they die, and the ‘Superclasico’ between Boca Juniors and River Plate will likely feature highly on almost every bucket list.

The two sides are iconic beyond Buenos Aires and Argentina, whether it be the kits they wear or the players who have represented them. Fireworks, pyrotechnics and bouncing stadiums, either at Boca’s La Bombonera or River’s El Monumental, are the backdrop to meetings between two of the South American country’s most significant institutions.

The tension between the teams led to the second leg of the 2018 Copa Libertadores final, the first continental final between the two, being moved 10,000 km to Madrid after the Boca players’ bus was attacked by River fans ahead of the return fixture. There are plenty of fierce rivalries in Argentina, but none come close to this one, hence why we have placed it at the top of our top 10 fiercest derbies in world football.