We're back with Part II of the captain's survey ahead of this weekends MLS Heineken Rivalry Week games. Yesterday, captains from around MLS talked to us about who their team's biggest rival is and their favorite rivalries elsewhere in MLS. Now we'll hear about some of their favorite rivalries outside MLS, the best tifo they've seen and what they think makes for a good rivalry in the second part of this anonymous survey.
What is your favorite rivalry in world soccer? (Outside MLS)
Barcelona-Real Madrid (El Clásico)
"Real Madrid vs. Barcelona. I think they’re both unbelievably good teams, unbelievably talented. The way they play, the way the games are, those are fun games to watch."
"Barcelona vs Real Madrid. Although [also] Manchester City and Chelsea. They always have problems with the coach, Pellegrini, Mourinho. [Inter] Milan and AC Milan too."
"Real Madrid-Barcelona."
"Let's go with Barcelona-Real Madrid, because when they play each other it's usually in a very big match that has a lot of implications, so those are always fun to watch. Also, if you're watching a Barcelona-Real Madrid game, you're watching some of the best players in the world at all of the positions."
“In the world, Barça-Real Madrid, Boca-River, USA-Mexico; there’s too many to mention. If you can start to learn and see that there’s so many out there. There are a lot of unique soccer games out there.”
“Barcelona-Madrid, without hesitation. It’s the Clásico on the world stage.”
"Well obviously the Madrid-Barcelona game... That’s probably the one I think about immediately like, when they’re playing, I’m going to watch.”
Celtic FC vs. Rangers FC (Old Firm Derby)
"Barcelona-Real Madrid; that’s the biggest rivalry. But I also remember and I see a lot of old game film of Rangers against Celtic. That’s something unbelievable. If you go to Ibrox in the Rangers stadium or Celtic Park, that’s something special, something really, really special. Celtic-Rangers, the Old Firm, it’s unbelievable.
"Probably Celtic-Rangers.Of course, [there's] the religious thing, which is a shame, but that's just the way it is. But in terms of atmosphere, it's electric."
"The Rangers-Celtic Old Firm, and that’s wild. It’s crazy. The fact that the clubs are in the same city, and in Scotland they’re the two top teams; they’ve always been competing for the league championship for as long as that league’s been in existence. And the fact that Celtic was predominantly a Catholic club before and Rangers were predominantly Protestant, obviously that adds fuel to the fire and it makes It maybe a little more unique than most rivalries. And that amplifies it as well. When it goes into religion, it’s a whole other level."
"I’m going to have to go with Celtic-Rangers. Even though we’ve missed out on it the last few years a little bit, the intensity when you watch that game is hard to compare to anything else. I love to watch those two teams play."
Other
"[The] Milan derby." [Eds. Note: AC Milan vs. Internazionale]
"Merseyside derby, I think. It’s tough. I like Liverpool and Everton, and I also like Liverpool and Man U. Both of those are awesome games. But if I had to pick, yeah probably Liverpool-Everton. Same city, there’s a park separating the stadiums, it’s my favorite."
"Atletico Madrid-Real Madrid. That's a massive one. Always feisty; seems like there's always a red card in that one. So a lot on the line there, that's a big one."
"I like the City/Man U one – I think that one is pretty good. If I get time when I’m don playing, I’d love to check out Rangers/Celtic and go to Boca/River, those two are next level, crazy and weird, almost unsafe. I’d be lying if I said I watched every rivalry game, but the way the schedule works out I can watch all the Clasico’s, that’s next level stuff."
Best tifo you’ve seen?
"I’m not going to lie; the one that New York put up a couple of weeks ago when they played New York City FC, that was hilarious. Biggest one by far I’ve ever seen."
"Of course the most recent ones are the most easy to think of, but I thought the Red Bulls’ tifo the other night was really creative against NYC. They had a picture of Pirlo and Lampard looking a bit elderly. It was good."
"Inter Milan against Milan AC, the fans, the tifo in Italy are very crazy. The fans are very passionate and every time they play against each other, with all the big players, it’s something crazy. Sometimes they have to stop the game because the fans used to throw anything, everything on the field."
"I don’t even look at those."
"Definitely in Germany. I think most games I see in Germany, maybe Borussia Dortmund, they always have the big, big flags."
"[This one from] Borussia Dortmund."
"There have been some pretty good ones here. I know last year someone had one that was a play on words with my last name. And I remember my first year, I just left Maryland – Maryland’s mascot was a terrapin, a turtle – and so they had a turtle with my head on it. It looked pretty cool. I have a picture of it, actually."
"It's a Cauldron one. I have to give them a shout-out. The one that I will always remember, because it has personal meaning to me, is the one they made that says 'No Other Club.' That was special to me, and it meant a lot, because we had just come back from the World Cup and we were welcomed back home in a special way."
"[The “Umbrella Girl” tifo in the 2013 season opener vs. New York Red Bulls.] That was my favorite because it was my first one, but 'Can’t Buy Me Love' was a good one too, with the Beatles reference, that was pretty cool, too. Close 1-2 for me there."
“There was one when we were playing Turkey in the World Cup lead-up in New York and there was the Statue of Liberty holding the cup. I thought that was pretty neat. They do some really good ones out there and they keep upping the next one. It’s pretty cool to see.”
"Any tifo involving Portland and Seattle."
"The five horsemen. I think it was [Seattle] against Portland a couple years ago. That was a really, really cool one. And to be up there on one of those, it's definitely an honor."
“The ‘Google TFC in Playoffs, No Results Found’ one in Toronto was pretty funny. Otherwise, I really liked the one that Barça fans did for Xavi for his last game. It was the whole Camp Nou doing it, 100,000 people.”
“Man, I honestly don’t remember a lot of them. You see them and then think they’re cool, but you kinda forget about them. I can’t think of any offhand.”
What makes a rivalry?
"Passion. Passion. Wanting to win for the fans because you know how much it means on a Monday morning for those fans going into work. When you live in the same city as someone [who roots for the crosstown rival] and having that boast about your team winning."
"The fans. I think the fans make it what it is. Obviously when two clubs have a certain history or if they’re in the same city, those definitely play key factors into making it a rivalry and those kind of establish it being a rivalry. But if you don’t have the passionate fans that are diehard supporters of their team and their club it doesn’t get the same result."
"Supporters. I think you must have supporters that support the team the whole game, who are very loud, who will make some noise when you score, when there is a foul, when there is a penalty, a free kick. Also, when both teams are playing for the jersey they are wearing. Then you realize the intensity goes high and everyone in the stadium will follow their team by shouting or singing."
"I think again, it goes back to fans, to the days of Big Soccer. I’ve never been on that site, but I know they went back and forth and I’m sure that kind of stuff has carried over to Twitter and elsewhere on social media. On game day, those fans show up and go crazy and the players act accordingly."
"Animosity."
"I think the most important is the history. Maybe sometimes the same city. To be the most important team in the country. Sometimes fights in the game makes it more than normal."
"I think it has to start with the on-field product. The two teams have to have a history of playing in difficult matches against each other and playing in big matches. I think that's where it starts. And then I think where rivalries can separate themselves is through the fans. How much do the fans get involved? How much does the city, the community get involved? I think that's it. But it starts with the field. If there's no product, or no real bad blood or competitiveness between the two teams, then it's very hard to have a rivalry."
"Competitive games between the two sides (playoffs, conference, etc.)."
"Probably proximity, just in terms of pure location, so that away fans can travel. I think the closer that two teams are geographically, I think that creates a natural rivalry and adds the element you’re looking for, the real hate, the real passion. It’s got to be location for sure."
"I think it’s important games, games that mean something. Not just the rivalry, but that it means something more than the rivalry. When you start getting some meaningful games and games that are in the playoffs or Open Cup, stuff like that, I think that’s when it puts fuel to the fire in terms of the rivalry.”
“You need a history of – not hate, but a little bit of animosity. You need banter. You need a logical reason. Barcelona-Madrid was because of the Franco era. There’s a geopolitical reason. River Plate-Boca Juniors, it's the rich and the poor in the same city. In Glasgow, it’s Protestant against Catholic. PSG-Marseille, the South against the North. You need a history.”
