What does derby mean in football?


Football can have some pretty confusing new terms when you first get into the sport, so we thought we should answer one of the most common questions from new football fans. 

What does derby mean in football? A derby in football is when two teams who are located geographically close to each other play against each other. Teams who are based in similar areas tend to be rivals and so the derbies tend to be more important for the fans than normal games. 

A derby in football is a game between two teams who are located in the same area or city. While this is pretty much always the case, a derby can also sometimes refer to a game between rival teams as derby does not always necessarily mean the teams are close. 

Derby’s are more generally used to talk about games between rivals, with both sets of fans hoping to get the bragging rights over their rivals. It is usually a highly emotional game for both sets of fans as they are desperate to beat their rival. It is why derby games can often be the most aggressive and hostile games. 

Fans tend to be more pumped up for those games and it makes the atmosphere incredible. This atmosphere and heightened emotion tends to create a lot of surprises in these games and form is often something that goes out of the window in a derby match. It makes the games incredibly exciting to watch. 

Some derbies really have nothing to do with the geographic location at all. El Classico is considered a derby in football despite Barcelona and Real Madrid not being anywhere close to each other on the map. That game is much more about the history and rivalry between the two clubs. 

Why is a derby called a derby? 

There are a couple of different explanations as to why a game between two teams who are geographically close together is called a derby. The first dates back to the 12th century and a mediaeval game of football. 

Royal Shrovetide Football 

Around the time of the 12th century, two sides of a town in Derbyshire. Royal Shrovetide Football is a game played in that town and it is a yearly occasion that happens on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday of every year. 

The idea of the game is that two sides of the town play against each other with the goals being three miles apart. The game is played for hours on end and goals are very difficult to come by due to the distance between the two games. The game is played between the Up’Ards and the Down’Ards. 

 As this is one of the oldest matches between geographically close rivals, it is thought that this is how the term Derby came to be as the game is played between two sides of Ashbourne in Derbyshire. 

Derby Horse Racing 

The other explanation is that the term derby was used to name a horse race in Derby. The race was founded in 1780 by the 12th Earl of Derby. This race first coined the phrase derby and it has since gone on to be used to describe a fixture between two teams close geographically. 

What is the difference between derby and rivalry? 

There is not a massive amount of difference between derbies and rivalries. A derby is used to describe a fixture between two teams closest together geographically. But there is almost always a rivalry between teams who are located geographically close together. As teams are so close, fans do not like seeing teams geographically close to them do well. 

It is what creates rivalries. However, not all rivalries are considered derbies. If we use Arsenal and Manchester United as an example. These two teams battled ferociously in the early 2000s for the Premier League title and their hostile games created a rivalry between the two teams. 

However, this does mean that it is a derby when the two teams play each other as they are located hundreds of miles apart. Whereas, not all derby matches are played between two teams with a rivalry. 

If you take the example of Arsenal against Brentford, these two teams are located in the same city. So when the two teams play against each other it is considered a London derby. But there is no rivalry between the two teams as Brentford have only recently been promoted to the Premier League. 

Is Manchester United vs Liverpool a derby? 

While most derbies are between teams located in the same city, the game between Liverpool and Manchester United is still considered a derby. The game is also known as the North-West derby as both teams are located in the northwest of England. The cities of Liverpool and Manchester United are only located only 30 miles apart. 

This sort of game may not have always been considered a rivalry, but the game is made much more exciting due to the rivalry between the two teams. Manchester United and Liverpool are the two most successful English clubs in the history of the game and this rivalry has created animosity between the two teams and their fans. 

With Liverpool and Manchester United being two of the most popular teams in the country, both sets of fans hate each other as they have often gotten in the way of each other’s success throughout both teams’ history. 

Part of the rivalry comes from both teams having incredibly dominant spells. Liverpool were by far the dominant team in England in the 1980s, but Liverpool’s dominance was stopped by Manchester United. When United appointed Sir Alex Ferguson, it created the dominant Manchester United team who have won the Premier League 13 times, while Liverpool have only won the title once. 

The rivalry is also helped by the games often being feisty and a lot of cards being handed out. So while these two teams are rivals, the match between them is also considered a derby due to the close proximity of both teams. 

Louis

Life long Portsmouth Fan and have followed football since 1993. Is there a better sport on earth?

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