Rivalries.
They existed before sports. From the dawn of modernized civilization, a tendency to bear hostility towards one person, city or group in particular, for whatever reason, has stood out as a defining characteristic of mankind.
Rivalries bring out the most competitive, the most daring, the most desperate and sometimes, the most gruesome parts of an individual. The deep seeded desire to out-do or “one-up” that one villain, that one arch-enemy you resent the most can sometimes become self-sustaining to the point of no return.
As you’re well aware, some of the most heated sports-related rivalries have reached such a point. You have your cross-town rivalries, divisional rivalries, playoff rivalries, school rivalries… you get the picture. They’re alive and well in today’s competitive sporting environment, and for good reason: they always breed some of the most compelling moments in sports.
Now when we talk about historic sports rivalries, who first comes to mind? Yankees v. Red Sox, of course. Cowboys v. Redskins is another big one. What about Lakers v. Celtics? Blackhawks v. Red Wings is huge in the Midwest, as is Bears v. Packers. And of course, one of the rivalries closest to my heart, Cubs v. Sox.
The background for some of these “hatred” games has been fueled by more than just geographical or result-based histories. Red Sox v. Yankees, for example, goes all the way back to Boston’s sale of Babe Ruth in 1919, a move that signaled the beginning of an 86 year timer which finally went off in the magical October of 2004.
But some “mega-matchups” we consider huge are only touted as such because we like adding consistent hype to otherwise routine gamedays of the year.
America (and its collective sports marketing agency) is 100% dramatic, bottom line.
We like things to be as exciting and entertaining as possible, which is understandable. But sometimes, our love of the comeback or big game of the week leads to certain contests getting blown out of proportion just so we’re fed the image of a “crucial clash coming up this weekend”.
In European soccer, exaggerating these rivalries is far less common. In the case of Barcelona v. Real Madrid, the hysteria surrounding “El Clásico” surpasses any single American contest, exacerbated or not, by a landslide.
And this is no opinion. Barca v. Madrid is the most watched domestic league soccer match in the world, and it generates higher viewership ratings in Spain than any other program in its history.
The roots of the rivalry? Let’s see… the two biggest cities in Spain, the two most successful and renowned soccer organizations in history, nearly polar opposites in terms of political ideology Spanish culture (Barcelona representing Catalan “nationalism” and Madrid standing for a more centralized society)… need I go on?
The Nou Camp, Barcelona’s stadium, reaches capacity at a little under 99,000 people. Last time I checked, that’s almost 20,000 larger than any NFL stadium (given, Michigan’s “Big House seats 110,000, but college athletics are followed far less religiously than professional sports). When Real Madrid pays Barcelona a visit on April 22, expect the crowd to surpass six figures including standing room. The match is one of pure wonder.
In terms of importance, I’m not even touching on the fabled duels of certain international squads, or even English, Italian or Portuguese rivalries comprehensively instilled in the fabric of European soccer.
Within the format of global soccer, there is so much to be enjoyed on the “this rivalry is unbelievable” scale that it’s almost depressing how severely many Americans are missing out.
