The English champion may come from Manchester, but it is London that steals the show. If only because this season the Premier League features no fewer than thirty city derbies, with Tottenham Hotspur versus Arsenal the fiercest of them all.
Nowhere is the magic of a derby felt as easily as in London, with its fourteen professional clubs packed closely together. It is the tension that begins to rise days before kickoff. It is the newspapers writing about little else, comparing players and digging up statistics from the past. And on match day itself: grown men pacing nervously in the morning and not much fun for their partners to be around. Pubs fill hours before kickoff, and the passionate singing on the way to the stadium sounds just a little louder than usual. Because shortly after, the enemy awaits. Rituals in a city that drinks, eats, and breathes football every weekend again and again.
Admittedly, not every derby in the English capital is equally special. But London as a whole certainly is, with so many internal clashes in one city. Because Fulham were relegated last season while Queens Park Rangers returned to the Premier League, the number of London derbies at the top level remained the same: thirty. That Sunday alone featured two more, with Chelsea versus Arsenal and West Ham United versus QPR on the schedule. Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace complete the group of six at Premier League level. In the Championship, Fulham, Brentford FC, Millwall, and Charlton Athletic currently provide additional city clashes.
Across the English capital almost every team has its own rival, usually determined by geography or history. At West Ham, for example, there is strong dislike toward Tottenham Hotspur, Charlton Athletic supporters dislike Crystal Palace, and Millwall’s hardcore fans smell blood whenever a match against West Ham United approaches. Though it should be said that at Millwall they more or less hate every opponent.
Dirty play
Nothing, however, surpasses the importance of the North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. Especially at White Hart Lane, every edition threatens to explode. Scenes in which thousands of apparently respectable men furiously wave their fists and pour a stream of curses and insults over Arsenal players are as common during the derby as the white of the touchline chalk. The battle for control of North London has lasted nearly a hundred years and passes from father to son. No supporter of either club is born hating the rival, but the chance of becoming infected with it is one hundred percent. Escape is simply impossible.
To understand why, we go back to 1919. Six years after Arsenal moved from southwest London to Highbury, the story begins. The top division expanded from twenty to 22 teams. The first place went to Chelsea, who had finished nineteenth. Tottenham Hotspur, who had finished last, seemed the logical candidate for the second spot. But more clubs were interested in joining the elite. A vote followed. Arsenal, who had finished only sixth in the division below, won convincingly. Because of bribery? The rumor was persistent at the time. Nothing was ever proven, but Tottenham were furious, suspected foul play, and the tone was set.
Things did not improve for the men at White Hart Lane afterward. From 1930 onward, Arsenal dominated with attractive football and won five league titles by 1938, becoming the best club in the country. Tottenham supporters watched through clenched teeth. Their club had fallen behind and began a chase that, apart from a successful period in the 1960s, still continues today. Whatever Spurs try, however much they invest, and however many years pass, redemption often remains out of reach.
Some numbers illustrate the gap: of the 45 Premier League meetings, The Gunners have won eighteen, while Tottenham were victorious only nine times. In twenty of the 22 Premier League seasons, Arsenal finished higher in the table than their rivals six kilometers away. No wonder the fire of hatred burns fiercest at White Hart Lane. The irony is that both clubs promote the same attractive and elegant style of football.
Who has displayed that style most consistently over the years remains a topic for endless debate. Fans at the Emirates Stadium enjoy mocking Spurs supporters, especially during the celebration of St. Totteringham’s Day, the day in the season when Tottenham can mathematically no longer finish above Arsenal. The rivalry is fully cultivated, even commercially. Special Arsenal-themed toilet paper is a popular gift among Spurs fans. Its purpose is obvious.
Meanwhile, something tragic seems to cling to Tottenham Hotspur, aside from their modest trophy list. The club is located in a bleak neighborhood where tourists are advised not to walk at night. Far too dangerous. White Hart Lane is surrounded by poverty and crime, with boarded-up houses and many empty properties. It was no coincidence that the London riots of August 2011 took place in this area, where frustration over numerous social problems runs deep.
Only when Tottenham play at home does the neighborhood come alive. The streets fill with singing and football scarves bring some color. Supporters themselves often live in better neighborhoods, which makes sense considering how many British pounds they must pay for a season ticket.
Dockers
Elsewhere in London, lines of hatred and rivalry also run across the city. Between Millwall and West Ham United they even cross the River Thames, from the southern bank to the northern one. It may be the most notorious of all London derbies, consistently placing police on their highest alert level. It is probably a good thing that the two clubs have rarely met in recent decades.
One example: in 1976, a Millwall supporter was beaten by a group of aggressive West Ham fans at New Cross railway station and thrown from a train. The man died on the spot, bleeding between the rails. More than five years ago, on August 25, 2009, West Ham United hosted Millwall at Upton Park in the League Cup. Numerous pitch invasions, a stabbing, hundreds of fighting supporters, and twenty injuries proved that the war between London’s dockers still continues.
Both clubs are working-class teams with many supporters from the poorest social groups, rooted in the docks along the Thames. Millwall play just south of the river but originally, like The Hammers, came from the north side of the city. More than a century ago, supporters of both clubs worked at competing shipyards, which fueled the rivalry from the very beginning. Revenge, prestige, a steady stream of young troublemakers, and a grim tradition have kept the derby trapped in a spiral of violence ever since.
It also puts the teasing between managers Arsène Wenger and José Mourinho into perspective. The rivalry between Arsenal and Chelsea is like simmering milk that never quite boils over. And elsewhere in London as well, the sharp edges of derby matches are often less severe. At Stamford Bridge, supporters are more concerned with the clubs from Manchester, which is logical given the current balance of power in English football.