A sports rivalry is intense competition between athletic teams or athletes. This pressure of competition is felt by players, coaches, and management, but is perhaps felt strongest by the fans. The intensity of the rivalry varies from a friendly competition on one end to serious violence on the other that, in one case (the Football War), was suggested to have led to military conflict. Team owners typically encourage rivialries as they tend to improve game attendance and television ratings for rivalry matches, but a rivalry that gets out of control can lead to fighting, hooliganism, and rioting. Often the topic of sports rivalries is as heated and controversial as politics and religion.
Rivalries stem from various sources. Simple geographic proximity as well as frequent meetings in important games can lead to rivalries. Social and political tensions can also be played out by proxy in a sports rivalry, as when Glasgow's sectarian differences are expressed in the Celtic-Rangers derby (known as the Old Firm derby), or when the Spanish-Catalan political conflict spills over to a Real Madrid-FC Barcelona football match (also known as El Clasico). Rivalries of the friendlier sort are common between college athletic programs in the United States and often involve pranks that rival student bodies play on each other, such as stealing the other school's mascot or painting school colors somewhere on the opposing school's campus.
In some leagues rivalries are officially regarded as important games and the winner gets an unusual prize (i.e. grill, trophy, high-definition television,etc.)
[edit] Famous sports rivalries
[edit] Original
Since before 1820
Since before 1880
Since 1888
Since 1902
Since 1930
Since 1950
[edit] Traditional Rivals
[edit] Local Derbies
[edit] More Recent Rivals
[edit] State Of Origin
[edit] Past Rivals
It is interesting to note that all three of their respective division rivals consider the Oakland Raiders and the Pittsburgh Steelers to be their main rival in the division.
[edit] Athletics
[edit] Baseball
[edit] Major League Baseball
Inter-league:
[edit] Rest of the world
[edit] Basketball
[edit] National Basketball Association
[edit] Rest of the World
[edit] International
[edit] Bodybuilding
[edit] College athletics
[edit] Curling
[edit] Club rivalries
[edit] Team rivalries
[edit] Cricket
[edit] Cycling
[edit] Ice hockey
[edit] National Hockey League
[edit] European leagues
[edit] Elitserien
[edit] International
[edit] Lacrosse
[edit] Netball
[edit] Test Matches
[edit] Motorsport
[edit] Grand Prix racing
[edit] Hillclimbing
[edit] IndyCar
[edit] MotoGP
[edit] Motocycle endurance
[edit] Rallying
[edit] Sports car racing
[edit] Touring car racing
[edit] Trans Am series
[edit] World Superbikes
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
