There are only a few countries in the World that can rival the Italian passion for the beautiful game, and fewer that can match the passion that comes from her derbies. So when the two most successful teams in Italy come head to head for bragging rights, shit goes down…
Juventus and Inter Milan isn’t a city rivalry like the Derby della Madonina, or the Derby della Capitale. The Derby D’Italia, as the name suggests, is a battle for Italy. Not a city. So what led to this being a game that would have Gianluigi Buffon say, “There are matches you play with pride, and then there’s Inter — you play those with your blood.”
Both sides hold contrasting identities. Juventus, based in Turin, owned by the powerful Agnelli family (think Fiat) and linked traditionally with the business elites. And while Inter and their hedge fund manager owners are more lately considered business elites – historically the Milanese team was considered more cosmopolitan than business like.
Inter’s foundation in 1907 after a split from AC Milan over the issue of foreign players led to Inter being considered a team of artists, poets and generally anti-establishment. This, therefore is a battle of contrasting styles, different cities and a battle for supremacy on the pitch – and off it.
Think Liverpool v Manchester United.
And when you add up the trophy count, it’s easy to see why this rivalry was allowed to blossom. Constantly competing at the top for honours, Juventus have 36 titles (officially, but we’ll come back to that). Inter hold 20, but have the upper hand with 3 European Cups (Champions League) to Juve’s 2. Overall, the two teams hold 113 crowns, with Juve edging Inter 67-46.
Titles ignited this rivalry into pure hatred during the 2006 season when Calciopoli exploded. Juventus (more specifically Luciano Moggi) were accused of manipulating referee appointments to favour certain clubs during the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Juventus would be relegated to Serie B and stripped of the 2006 title which was then handed to Inter who originally finished as runners up.
It was Inter’s first title since 1989 and often referred to by Juventus fans as the cardboard title (scudetto di cartone) but as Marco Materazzi put it, “We took what they stole from us”. Inter were implicated in Calciopoli but never charged with anything which led to calls of hypocrisy from Juventus fans. There were calls of a witch hunt against Juventus, however, Inter fans point to one game in 1998 which they feel proves their point.
With four games remaining in the season, Inter travelled to the Stadio delle Alpi for a showdown with league leaders Juventus, who sat one point ahead of them. Inter, without a scudetto in nearly a decade were loaded with stars including Ronaldo, Djorkaeff, Simeone and Zanetti. Juventus included in their squad Del Piero, Zidane, Davids and Deschamps. None of these players would be the star of the day, step forward referee Piero Ceccarini.
Juventus took the lead in the first half with a really well taken goal by Del Piero (what else did you expect), before Inter piled on the pressure, with Ronaldo going close on several occasions. The game then settled into a rather scrappy second half, before the flashpoint.
It all happened in 15 seconds really. Ronaldo entered the Juventus box and was blocked off from taking on a shot by Mark Iuliano. The Inter players looked round at the referee, expecting a whistle that never came. Cue pandemonium. Inter players reacted as you might expect, chasing the referee and waving their arms, while Davids brought the ball away and up the pitch. He passed to Zidane who beat two defenders and rolled the ball into Alessandro Del Piero. Taribo West came in from behind and pushed him in the back, Del Piero went down and Ceccarini blew for a spot kick.
Few debate that West had fouled Del Piero, but Inter were incensed, seeing no difference between the foul on him and the challenge on Ronaldo less than a minute earlier. Inter lost their heads, surrounding the referee, shoving him, the Inter manager Simonini was sent off.
The controversy didn’t stop there though, Del Piero actually missed the penalty. Inter, buoyed, went on the attack and had a goal ruled out for a Zamorano foul on the keeper. Juve celebrated, Inter fumed.
Pagliuca ended up in a scrap with Juventus fans and three days later in the Italian Parliament, Domenico Gramazio of the far-right National Alliance party had to be held back as he tried to confront footballer-turned-politician Massimo Mauro, who had won the title with Juventus in the 1980s before joining the Democratic Party.
Inter fans refer to the game as the mother of Calciopoli and the season became known as the great robbery. The damage was done though, the Derby D’Italia which was once a great sporting spectacle was now an all out war. And it wouldn’t get any prettier.
There’s much debate in Italy about the role of Ultras and that isn’t going away, but one thing you can usually guarantee is that they’ll light up an atmosphere, especially in a derby. It isn’t always in a positive way, however, and there have been numerous examples of this Derby boiling over off the pitch.
One of the more famous examples comes from 2018 when Inter’s Curva Nord caused national outrage with a banner mocking the Heysel disaster from 1985. I won’t put here what the banner said, it’s reprehensible, you can Google it yourself if you want. Needless to say, it didn’t go down well and retribution was swift.
Historically in Italy, especially around derbies, Ultras groups agree to pacts of non-aggression. Instead, hoping to protect the streets of their city from becoming a warzone and ensuring no innocent fans are swept up in the trouble. There is no such pact between the Juventus and Inter ultras. In fact, quite the opposite, they maintain a “guerra aperta” or “open warfare”.
Perhaps Zlatan Ibrahimovic captured this the best, when he signed for Inter from Juventus in 2006, “When I signed for Inter, I knew I wasn’t just changing clubs — I was switching sides in a war.”
Hopefully, I’ve managed to tread the area around some of the Derby’s thornier issues without upsetting too many people and if you’re still here we can debate some of the greatest matches.
I actually went to one last year, I was at the San Siro as Inter blew a 4-2 lead to draw the game 4-4 thanks to an inspired Kenan Yildiz who took it upon himself to rescue his side. In 2022, however, Inter did win a match 4-2, with goals in extra time from Ivan Perisic, one penalty and one absolute thunderbolt securing the Coppa Italia crown for Inter.
In 1961, the biggest win in this fixture happened. In what was supposed to a title deciding fixture, crowds flocked to the Stadio Comunale in Turin to see the Bianconeri (hopefully) crowned champions. The game was clearly oversubscribed, with Juventus fans sat on the Inter bench and covering the running track, inches from the pitch.
After 30 minutes, the referee called time on the game, the conditions were ridiculous. According the rules, Juventus (responsible for crowd control) should have forfeit the game 0-2 as the responsible party for the abandonment. Juventus appealed the decision to the CAF (Football Arbitration Court) which happened to have as its president… the Juventus president.
The 0-2 defeat was therefore subsequently overturned, and a replay ordered. A furious Inter Milan were deducted their (then) 2 points for the “win” and told to replay the game. This dropped them back below Juventus. Inter were furious and protested the decision, sending a youth team instead of their first team, subsequently losing 9-1. Juventus won that title and a pure hatred was born.
The Derby D’Italia is Italy’s El Clasico. It’s the two most successful teams fighting it out for supremacy. It’s bragging rights until the next time. Since Calciopoli, the bitterness and hatred between the two sides has intensified and despite the league position, the games are always intense. Inter hate Juventus. And Juventus hate Inter more. As Claudio Marchisio put it, “We’re not just playing Inter — we’re defending who we are.”
The fixture shows off the best and the worst of Italian football, and if you get the opportunity to go, you should. You just might enjoy yourself.
The Calcio Blog 