Latest news with #derby
The Guardian
18 hours ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
What is the longest gap between European top-flight football derbies?
'Paris FC's promotion means that Paris will have its first Ligue 1 derby since 1978-79. Is there any European city that has had a longer gap between top-flight derbies?' queries Steve Whittaker from Frankfurt (which hasn't had a top-flight derby in the Bundesliga era). We've touched on this before, many years ago, when we found a 44-year gap between the meeting of Hertha Berlin and FC Union and a 48-year wait for FSV v Eintracht in Steve's home city. However both derbies reconvened in the second tier and don't count here. So it is well worth us having a drill down into some top-flight derby deserts. The 46-year wait for Paris bragging rights to be earned is indeed a long one, particularly for a capital city. Dirk Maas takes us to the Belgian capital, Brussels, where fans of Anderlecht and Union Saint-Gilloise had to wait from the 1972-73 season (when Union were relegated) until 2021-22. We don't have the exact date of the the derby that took place in the early 1970s, but that adds up to at least 48 years. 'Zenit regularly played Dynamo Saint Petersburg in the Soviet top flight between 1938 and 1963, when Dynamo were relegated,' writes Peter Skilton. 'It wouldn't be until the 2017-18 season, when FK Tosno (from the Town of Tosno but playing at Zenit's former home of the Petrovsky Stadium in the Saint Petersburg) were promoted, that they played another local derby in the top flight. Tosno only lasted one season before being relegated and leaving Zenit as once again the only club in the city.' We make that 54 years. But Lino Di Lorenzo has been in touch to set the record straight on the original question and offer a few other examples. 'My research suggests that Paris actually had its last league derby in 1989-90 (not 1979) when Racing Club de Paris were relegated from Ligue 1, so it will mean a 36-year gap. A long time, but not the longest (although probably the most surprising). The answer depends on whether you limit yourself to European capitals, or cities with populations of more than, say, one million.' Any European city is fine, Lino, so fire away: Valencia had no derby between Valencia and Levante in La Liga between 10 January 1965 and 8 January 2005 (40 years). Berlin had no Bundesliga derby between 1977 (Hertha Berlin v Tennis Borussia Berlin) until 2019 (Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin – 42 years). There were Berlin derbies in the old East German league, but teams from West Berlin would not have been able to participate in those. Cologne has no league derby since 1974 (FC Köln v Fortuna Köln) but those two did meet in the 1982 DFB Pokal Cup, but that doesn't count. So the gap is active at 51 years. Finally, Naples has never had a Serie A derby at all. To get close to one, you need to venture back to the pre-Serie A days of 1921 when the Italian Championship involved a series of mini-leagues leading to a final round-robin. In the last round before it entered the final phase in 1921, three teams from Naples played each other in a mini league – Bagnolese, Internazionale Napoli, and Naples Foot-Ball Club. Bagnolese have since dissolved, and the other two merged in 1926 to form what is now Napoli. So that could be 105 years and counting. Lino also points out that Ajax have not had a top-flight derby in quite some time. FC Amsterdam were relegated in 1978 and went out of business in 1982. So that's 47 years and counting. But Mykola Kozlenko has perhaps found two potential answers. The first is the biggest 'pure' gap, which he thinks is 92 years, in Lausanne, between 1930-31 and 2023-24. 'Only one team from Lausanne were regulars at the top level, namely Lausanne-Sports. However, unusual regulations in the 1930-31 season meant that several second-tier teams were promoted mid-season. Racing Lausanne were one of them, leading to a derby against Lausanne-Sports on 1 February 1931. In the 2023-24 season, two Lausanne teams were promoted to the Swiss Super League: Lausanne-Sport and Stade Lausanne-Ouchy (the latter last played at the top level in the inaugural 1897-98 season – a 126-year gap). The first of the two Lausanne derbies happened on 21 October 2023.' The longest 'ongoing' streak without a derby from active teams is 104 years, in Bradford, since 1920-21. 'There used to be a Bradford derby at the top level. The last top-level game took place on 2 October 1920. With Bradford City in League One and Bradford (Park Avenue) playing in the eighth tier now, this derby is not exactly expected to happen again in the Premier League any time soon.' Get in touch if you have any more to add to the list. We have another good one to add to the list … Here's Tom Berrett to introduce him. 'Spurs once signed a player called Rodrigo Defendi – a centre-back, no less.' Yes, he was signed as a 16-year-old in 2005 having been spotted by Frank Arnesen, but at such a tender age the Brazilian was never given a first-team start by Martin Jol. He did go on to have a decent career, though, winning the Coppa Italia with Roma, the Portuguese Cup with Vitória de Guimarães and the league title with Botafogo. Last month we looked at players who had scored more goals for their country than their clubs. Sam McIlwaine has a cracking example from the present day: the young West Brom and Northern Ireland midfielder Isaac Price, whose career record is a thing of trivialicious beauty. Clubs: two goals, 75 appearances (one every 37.5 games) Country: nine goals, 22 appearances (one every 2.44 games) And there's another player to keep your eye on too. 'This weekend the state leagues in Brazil finally came to a close,' wrote Paulo Padilha in May 2012. 'Bahia ended a 11-year trophy drought when they were crowned champions over local rivals Vitória and I couldn't help but notice that the trophy they were lifting was in the shape of an elevator. In this case it was one of the landmarks of the city of Salvador. Are there other examples of trophies that don't conform to the usual cup/vase/shield/pedestal-thingy shapes?' Brazilian state federations seem the chief culprits here, as Paulo went on to explain: 'Over the years the state championships have provided several trophies in the shape of buildings. The federation of Rio Grande do Norte presented another replica of a local landmark in addition to the regular trophy that changes hands from year to year, while the Santa Catarina and São Paulo federations have been known to hand out replicas of their own headquarters. The São Paulo federation even had a somewhat traditional trophy in the shape of the state's gubernatorial palace, that was around for several years and required several people to carry it.' A 2025 update: we now have the Club World Cup trophy to add to the list. 'England and Germany are in the Women's Euro 2025 semi-finals (at the time of writing). If they meet in the final, it could mean Jess Carter of England playing for the trophy against her fiancée, Ann-Katrin Berger of Germany. Have two spouses or partners ever played against each other in a competitive match?' enquires Ciaran McCarthy (Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema missed each other by a matter of minutes earlier in Euro 2025). 'In the recent England v Sweden Euro 2025 penalty shootout, only five of the 14 penalties taken were scored – a success rate of 36%. Statistically, is this the worst penalty shootout in an international competition? What about club competitions?' asks Derek Robertson. 'If a player has been sent off in a knockout tie that goes to penalties, it's possible that the shootout could continue long enough that the offending team's first penalty taker will take a second spot-kick up against the opposition's last penalty taker. Has this ever happened?' muses Chris Carter. 'Has any club ever won such a pair of disparate trophies, in terms of breadth and depth of opposition, as the Conference League and the swivelling saucer that Chelsea just won?' wonders Paul Crawford. 'My only offer is Celtic in 1967 winning the European Cup and the Glasgow Cup?' 'Malmö and Copenhagen were drawn to face each other in Champions League qualifying, presuming they win their respective ties first,' writes Jack B. 'They played each other in the 2019-20 Europa League too. These two cities are approximately 26 miles apart. Is this the closest European tie between two teams in different associations?' Mail us with your questions and answers
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
Pec has 2 goals, Yoshida scores in stoppage time for Galaxy in 3-3 tie with LAFC
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gabriel Pec scored two goals and Maya Yoshida added a goal in the seventh minute of stoppage time for the LA Galaxy in a 3-3 tie with Los Angeles FC on Saturday night. Eddie Segura was shown a straight red card (violent conduct) in the first minute of stoppage time and LAFC played a man down the rest of the way. LAFC (10-5-7) has its string of three consecutive wins — all shutouts by goalkeeper Hugo Lloris — snapped. Yoshida flicked in a header, off an arcing ball-in played by defender Mauricio Cuevas, from the center of the area to cap the scoring. Denis Bouanga scored twice for LAFC. Bouanga has scored at least one goal in four consecutive games and has seven goal contributions (five goals, two assists) during that span. Pec converted from the penalty spot in the 36th minute and added a goal in the 79th — finishing off a string of quick crisp passes with a first-touch shot from the right-center of the area — for the Galaxy (3-14-7). The 24-year-old Pec, who had 30 goal contributions (16 goals, 14 assists) as an MLS rookie last season, has five goals and three assists this season. The Galaxy is 8-7-7 against LAFC all time in the regular season. Bouanga opened the scoring in the 22nd minute, his sixth consecutive game against the Galaxy with a goal. Bouanga perfectly timed his run onto a well-placed ball-ahead played by Ryan Hollingshead a blasted a first-touch shot into the net. Javairo Dilrosun stopped a low cross played from the left side by Nate Ordaz and then flicked in the finish from the right corner of the 6-yard box to give LAFC a 2-0 lead in the 31st. On a breakaway, Bouanga outraced the defense and then beat goalkeeper Novak Micovic, who crept off his line, with a rolling shot from near the penalty spot to make it 3-1 in the 67th. The Galaxy, the defending MLS Cup champions, lost 2-1 at home against Austin on Wednesday to snap their season-long three-game unbeaten streak. ___ AP soccer:
BBC News
6 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Haven v Town - rugby league's great outpost derby
When we think of the great derbies in rugby league, our minds head straight for Wigan Warriors versus St Helens or Hull FC against Hull don't tell that to fans of the game in one of its great heartlands in west Cumbria. There it is all about Whitehaven and Workington clubs may be in League 1, rugby league's third tier, but that does not dim the passion or the bragging are up for grabs on Sunday as the pair meet at Whitehaven's Ortus Rec what is it that makes this fixture so special? Situated 10 miles apart along the west Cumbrian coast, Whitehaven and Workington are proper rugby league nearest significant football team, Carlisle United, is an hour up the road so, in sport, it is all about the 13-player isolated from the M62 corridor across the north of England that provides most of the teams, these two towns represent an area where the game has always been popular. Formed within a few years of each other in the 1940s, they tapped into the mining communities and Workington, in particular, made a big reached three Challenge Cup finals in seven seasons, winning it in 1952, while they were Premiership Champions the year too, had special moments including beating a touring Australian side in 1956 and losing in a Challenge Cup semi-final a few months were actually one of the 12 founding clubs of Super League in 1996, but won only two games that season in finishing bottom, were relegated, and have never returned. Fast forward to now and both teams are in the game's third division. Workington are third, well placed to claim one of the top-four places at the end of the season for the Super 8s to battle for three spots in the Championship for 2026 with the four lowest-placed sides in the second are eighth in the 10-team League 1 and will need a spectacular finish to get in the top do that, victory over their old rivals would be just the start. It would also be revenge for the narrow 10-8 defeat in the reverse league fixture on Good Friday at Derwent Park. 'Best rivalry in rugby league' One player who knows all about this fixture is Jamie Doran. Born in Whitehaven, he is now in his second spell at Workington, sandwiched in between two years at his hometown 30-year-old came through the ranks at Wigan as a youngster and made his debut for them in a Super League game at home against has seen the biggest game at close quarters, but the sport's importance to the local area gives Sunday's match extra significance."Walk through both towns and you'll see Super League shirts, NRL club shirts, but you'll always see a Whitehaven or Workington top," he told BBC Sport."The towns are quite small and everybody knows everybody. That makes it a little bit more exciting, especially for whoever wins in the week after the derby, at work, in the streets, when you see your friends. "Obviously both clubs are struggling a little bit now but, for me, it's the best rivalry in rugby league." With a foot in both camps, Doran would love to see both clubs do have spent eight of the past nine seasons in the third tier, while Haven are back at this level after five seasons in the is where Cumbria's other professional club, Barrow Raiders, currently sit Doran believes all three should be aspiring to play in rugby league's middle tier."If you ask me, you want all three Cumbrian clubs in the Championship - Whitehaven, Workington and Barrow," he said. "It makes for six great games a season - your fanbase picks up, the quality of the squad improves, more money off the RFL [Rugby Football League]."We want three established Championship clubs. Super League is probably out of the reach at the minute, but the Championship isn't. "There's nothing that can't stop us from doing that. Backing is important but Barrow seem to be doing that right now." Whitehaven were relegated to League 1 at the end of last season after a tumultuous were beset by financial problems with players going unpaid, board members resigning and the club's very future being under St Helens player and television pundit Kyle Amor came in for the last six games, but he could not prevent he knows that making sure the Marras are still playing this season was an effort in itself."My own ego wanted us to stay up but we were unable to do that given the challenges that were presented," he said."In hindsight, it was probably the best thing for the club as it allowed for a reset and to do what they are doing now. "I don't think they are out of the woods by any stretch, but I put my hands up to do that role to make sure the club carried on."There was a very real and serious threat the RFL was going to pull the licence away and rugby league would no longer exist in that town. "That's how serious it was." Stronger together? One Cumbria team? A proud son of Whitehaven, Amor had to leave his county to make it to the top of the game as a Super League and Challenge Cup winner at is a situation faced by all promising players in the area, with current St Helens and England forward Morgan Knowles the latest example of a fine Cumbrian export. Amor loves the derby, but he wonders if two, or even three, of Whitehaven, Workington and Barrow could merge into one Cumbrian team to allow rugby league to survive and thrive in the region. "They are talking about expanding Super League to a 14-team competition and yet again we look past a hotbed of the game which is west Cumbria," he said. "I don't believe rugby league can afford and sustain 36 professional clubs. "Central funding to League 1 has been cut and I genuinely believe there will come a point where one or both of those west Cumbria clubs will struggle to exist, unless they pull themselves together and try to move forward that way. "I think the game would welcome that. There is the old thing that Whitehaven and Workington will never merge and I get that."But if you put top-flight rugby in Cumbria, people will come and watch it regardless of which town it's in."
The Independent
12-07-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Why England-Wales will reveal how far the Lionesses will go at Women's Euro 2025
If there was any question about how England would prepare for Sunday's 'derby' against Wales, Sarina Wiegman actually revealed it the moment the build-up started. The coach had been asked whether goal difference had been a consideration in the minutes after the 4-0 win over the Netherlands. 'No,' Wiegman responded. 'We discussed how to play at our best.' As classically simple as that sounds, and as different as this game is to the Dutch, it does illustrate the mentality running through the squad now. England are now driven by a sense of focus, arguably aided by the opening 2-1 defeat to France. In the days after that, they held a group meeting, where the aim was to step back and remember what they did to get here. No more external noise. They've tried to shut themselves off from social media. That is perhaps an admission that a certain overconfidence had previously overtaken the group. The theme of 'egos' growing since Euro 2022 has been an undercurrent to this tournament's build-up. The France defeat was a jolt. It has sparked an intensity to training. Wiegman has since set an attitude where there is full commitment to everything they do. It is of course the way to try and win a tournament, but it might be particularly helpful for a fixture like this against Wales. On Friday, Lauren Hemp gave Wales the credit of showing them full respect and she praised their historic qualification for this competition. 'It's going to be a really tough match,' the forward said. But, it's probably not true. Wales have already been beaten by three goals in both of their matches, and the 4-1 to France could have been worse. If all goes normally, England should really win this by four or more. That isn't "arrogance". Except, these aren't really normal games, either. The fact such a fixture falls in a final group game is illustration enough of that. It has that strange contradiction of serving as one of the most exacting games you're supposed to face, and yet England are fully expected to win easily. The great danger in such matches is that the superior team can start with the subconscious knowledge they are going to win, but aren't urgent enough to actually make it happen. Then, the longer they go without scoring, the more a nervous tension infuses the occasion. Wales' own feelings towards their neighbours - as well as the aim of getting their first ever point in a tournament - adds another layer. This is going to be a team giving everything to stop England. Within that, there's an inherent danger to fixture. That's why England want to ensure they fully commit to whatever the next requirement is. Hemp insists it isn't quite taking each game as it comes, though. 'We're taking each game as like a final,' she said. 'I think that shows the mentality of the group to be able to bounce back in the way that we did. Like we didn't just beat [Netherlands] 1-0, we beat them convincingly and we put in a great performance that this England want to show.' Such words reveal something else about the squad, that is naturally only being said behind the scenes. As with the Dutch, they don't just want to win. They want to offer something convincing, to 'hit them hard', to 'lay down another marker'. The irony to that is that it would almost certainly mean England finish second in the group. The only way they can go top is if the Netherlands beat France. Such a result would leave all three teams on six points each, taking it to a three-team mini-league to decide the top two where the results against Wales don't count. Of course, that is likely to be how the England squad might like it. It's largely going to go unsaid, and one of those where everyone talks about the danger of thinking that way, but the reality is blunt: if you finish second, you won't get Spain until the final. And, if you're playing Spain, it is probably better to get them in a fixture where the tension is heightened. More things can go wrong. Anxiety can increase if things don't start going your way. In other words, a much higher-scale version of what can happen in a match like England-Wales. That does point to one other consequence of the victory over the Dutch, mind. The Netherlands were supposed to be one of the six top-level sides in this tournament, but they were dismal. England looked several classes above, and that is a team that had been beset by issues. With France the only team outside Spain and England to put in such a display - and that of course by beating Wiegman's side - it's hard not to think a route has opened. We wait to see how all of Norway, Sweden and Germany look once they proceed to the quarter-finals, but it's already possible to envisage another England-Spain final That much has changed in Wiegman's camp. The manager, of course, won't allow that kind of thinking. By now, the players won't either. It's about getting their next jobs done, starting with this Wales match. Do that, and more might well be possible.
BBC News
12-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Euro 2025 Wales v England: Why some fans are supporting both sides
"It's like any derby - you never want to lose to the enemy."That was how Gareth Bale described the rivalry between Wales and England in 2016, the last time the neighbouring countries faced off in a Euros tournament. But nine years on, with the women's teams meeting for the first time at a tournament, some fans have said they have no trouble supporting both teams come kick-off. One fan put the difference in attitude and comparative lack of rivalry down to inclusivity within the women's game, although not everyone agrees. Meanwhile experts said fans were more aware of the challenges women's teams had to face in order to play on the biggest stages. Nicola Chapman, 54, is one of those fans cheering on both countries. She is following the two teams in Switzerland and watched Wales' opener against the Netherlands, before seeing England take on the same opponents. Originally from London, she came to Wales in 1999 and has remained ever since. The honorary Welshwoman said even though she was England "through and through" when it came to football, her suitcase is split down the middle with England and Wales gear. She said the inclusivity of the women's game made her feel able to cheer on both sides. "You still get the banter between the both sides, but it does feel a lot more good natured. I think the big difference between the men and women's game is the inclusivity."Come kick-off time, she will be donning Wales colours and singing along to the national anthem Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau, but added she might have to "sit on her hands" if England score. Siwan Davies, 20, from Bala, Gwynedd, said the rivalry between the two nations was "a joy to watch"."There's nothing better than seeing two passionate countries battle it out against each other" she said, adding it was "fair" for some to support both nations and attributing that to the popularity of the Women's Super League (WSL)."In my opinion it's down to the WSL, as so many English players play for their favourite club".Ms Davies said she thought the rivalry would grow as the years go on and Wales improve, adding she hoped to see bigger attendances and more investment in the country. Alex Lloyd, 30, from Maesteg, Bridgend county, said she had an interest in football from a young age but "fell back in love" with it following England's appearance in the 2023 Women's World Cup in Australia."I support both Wales and the Lionesses, but being Welsh it's always important to show support to your home nation in major tournaments," she said. "Women's football is evidently bigger in England than it is Wales but hopefully with Wales being in their first major tournament it will open the game up to young girls across the country."The success of recent tournaments for the Lionesses and the overall quality of their players draws me to them."She said she enjoyed football when she was younger, but the women's game was not shown or spoken about as much as today, with a lack of idols. "It was mostly known as a boys or men's sport and it was always the male footballers we would want to be like," she said it was "incredibly special" to see young girls being part of women's teams, and praised the likes of Beth Mead for speaking openly about the loss of her mum, something Alex also experienced at a young age. Dr Penny Miles, lecturer and researcher into fan culture at the University of Bath, said there was "feminist solidarity" in the women's game. "The conditions female players have had to face both sides of the border means a lot more solidarity," she said. "Whilst the English FA is quite ahead of the Welsh FA in terms of investment, the conditions, professionalisation, didn't really come into place until 2019 really."The fans have seen the challenge all these women have had to face, I think that makes you want to support women's football, irrespective of where they come from."Dr Miles said she had seen Chile and Argentina fans supporting each other during the 2019 World Cup, despite them generally being seen as big rivals. But is it fair to say this camaraderie between rival fans is confined to the women's game? Prof Stacey Pope, from Durham University, found football fans in the north-east of England would regularly watch rival teams as part of their own research dating back to the 1950s."Modern fans may find it hard to believe, but many Newcastle United fans would watch Sunderland," she said. Prof Pope added the rise in coverage around the women's game since 2015 had helped bring a new wave of fans. "Increased visibility and increased media coverage opens it up to supporters across the board and one of the key things from that research was that that kind of respectful coverage and the amount of coverage has also led to shifts and changes in attitudes," she said. "Which can actually lead to to shifts in terms of moving from sexist and misogynistic attitudes to more progressive attitudes. That's been something that's been really positive in terms of the increased media visibility." There has been a 45% increase in participation in women's football in Wales since 2021, while the number of women and girl's teams in England has doubled in the past seven years. But not everyone will be rushing to buy half-half scarfs for Mitchel, 35, from Cardiff said she could not "understand how anyone could be fans of both" and added "there is a definite rivalry" which "will show on the pitch". Hayley Clarke, from Bangor, Gwynedd, started following the Lionesses games when she got into football during the 2019 World Cup. But she said she would "never" support England over Welsh team will forever be known as history makers, regardless of who you will be supporting on Sunday.
