Rivalry and Hatred – the Derbies in Football

In the photo above: Former HSV goalkeeper Richard Golz during the preview of the NDR documentary “The Derbys – legendary football-Duels” in Hamburg’s Zeise cinema in conversation with the “Hamburg Journal”.

Derbies are more than just football, which is why they are the most important games of the year for fans.

In the three-part documentary series “The Derbies – The Legendary Football Duels of the World”, NDR looks at the city duels in Glasgow, Buenos Aires and Hamburg and shows what makes these special football encounters so special.

That's what it's about

All episodes will be broadcast on ARD from February 1, 2025 Media Library to see.

The documentaries are about how the derbies are rooted in the population, about pop culture, about history. What are the origins of old rivalries?

What role does religion or PoliticsThe authors Willem Konrad, Ben Wozny and Ole Zeisler show what influence a derby can have on the culture of a city and an entire country.

The first episode is about the “Old Firm” between Celtic Glasgow and Glasgow Rangers, the second episode is about the “Superclásico” between River Plate and Boca Juniors and the third episode is about the Hamburg city duel between HSV and FC St. Pauli.

Background

Each derby shows a different aspect of rivalry: In Glasgow, it is a religious conflict between the Irish-born Catholics of Celtic and the royalist Protestants of Rangers.

In Buenos Aires it is a duel between rich and poor, between the “Millonarios” from River and the club from the slum “La Boca”.

In Hamburg, the rivalry between “pepper sacks” and punks is still young, but still part of the city and pop culture.

Most recently, the small district club St. Pauli once again outpaced the big HSV with its promotion to the 1st Bundesliga.

The authors speak to current and former players and coaches, with ultras and hooligans, with journalists and club legends as well as well-known fans, including Jörg Albertz (ex-Rangers player), Martin Demichelis (ex-River coach), Olli Dittrich (HSV fan) and Jackson Irvine (FC St. Pauli captain).

Sierks Media / © Photo: NDR, Christoph Kohlhöfer