May 24, 2014. A day that will never be forgotten by the residents of Madrid. The 202nd El Derbi Madrileno was contested between the Spanish capital’s two heavyweight clubs in Lisbon, a nine-hour car journey west. It was the first-ever occasion when the final of the European cup had been played out between clubs from the same city. Atletico Madrid, managed by the intensely-passionate Diego Simeone, came into the match fresh on the back of a historic La Liga title triumph – their first in 18 years. This was the first European cup final in their history, and they were attempting to thwart Real Madrid lifting La Decima – their 10th.
Just as it looked like they could, however, a 93rd-minute Sergio Ramos header brought the contest into extra time. Atletico were out on their feet by then and Los Blancos breezed to a 4-1 win. The manner of the victory appeared cruel on Atletico, who had seemingly shaken off the fatalistic characteristics which had haunted them for over a decade before Simeone's arrival in 2011. Los Rojiblancos’ 2013 Copa del Rey final triumph over their neighbours was their first derby win in 14 years. This is a rivalry that has been reignited in recent campaigns and historically is littered with contradictions, constantly changing and shapeshifting.
Real Madrid is often associated with Spanish nationalism, backed and supported by General Franco, a symbol of Spanish power, supported by the establishment, social conservatives and aspiring members of the middle class. Their Santiago Bernabeu home is located in the upper-class Paseo de la Castellana in the swanky business district in the capital. A simplistic view is that their fierce city rivals Atletico are the city’s working-class club, whose fans are drawn from the south of Madrid and intimidating Vicente Calderon is located next to a brewery along the Manzanares river. In fact, only 24 players have represented both teams, with Jose Antonio Reyes and Santiago Solari the sole examples from recent years.
Atleti were founded in 1903 by three Basque students, who wanted to twin the club with their boyhood heroes Athletic Bilbao, which gave birth to the Atletico/Athletic prefix and their shared red-and-white striped shirts. The clubs officially broke their ties in the early 1920s and the outbreak of the Civil War in 1936 saw the capital outfit merge with members of the Spanish Air Force to become Athletic Aviacion de Madrid. Back-to-back league titles in 1940 and 1941 – coupled with the presence of aerial war heroes – brought the club great favouritism from the authoritarian government and particularly Franco himself. The prefix ‘Athletic’ was forced by decree to switch to the Spanish ‘Atletico’ (a decision later reversed, post-Franco, by the Basques), but the title had no relevance to Franco’s preference of club, likewise at Real – whose royal prefix was granted by King Alfonso XIII in 1920, along with a string of other clubs.
Just like any savvy political leader, Franco was not afraid to contradict himself and shift his stance to one which granted him the greatest political benefit. The all-conquering Real Madrid provided the perfect platform for a Spanish state, which was becoming increasingly isolated on an international stage, to assert his perceived power and authority. Franco’s popular opportunism allowed him to link Los Blancos’ success to the glory of Spanish centralism. This led Atletico fans to regularly chant “el equipo del gobierno, la verguenza del pais” (team of the government, shame of the country) at their city rivals – a somewhat-inaccurate version of the reality, given Franco had previously sympathised with Atletico.
The modern ‘ultras’ of both Madrid clubs are tarred by association with far-right politics and Neo-Nazism. Atleti’s Frente Atletico members are feared across the country, linked with violence and horrific racism. Real’s most prominent ultras group, Ultras Sur, do not carry quite the same reputation, but their behaviour and far-right politics have never been far from the public eye. While both share a great rivalry, the more vicious elements of their fanbase reserve their hatred towards Basques, Catalans and Galicians, alongside any other group who match themselves with separatist ideals. Nazi symbols are on view outside the streets of both stadiums, while fascist salutes aren’t uncommon, depending on the opposition.
Both clubs have recently attempted to disassociate themselves with both groups. Atletico banned Frente Atletico less than a year ago following the death of Deportivo La Coruna fan Francisco Javier Romero Taboada, while Real Madrid have reassigned the area of the stadium previously used by Ultras Sur to other fans who are better behaved.
Both clubs encompass such mass swathes of fans that classifying them politically or socially would be too erroneous a generalisation, though there is truth that Real draw their fans from more affluent areas of the city than Atletico. However, the true working class, left-wing team of the city are Rayo Vallecano from the district of Vallecas.
That 2013 Copa triumph – Jose Mourinho’s final game in charge at the Bernabeu – did signal a shift in power in terms of the derby matches, despite Real’s dramatic Decima. Atletico have won three of the previous four League games, the 2014 Supercopa and knocked Real out of the Copa del Rey later that campaign. On the other hand, Atleti’s European jinx hasn’t showed any signs of shifting as a late Javier Hernandez strike was enough for Real to advance in the Champions League quarter-final tie between the two clubs.
In a rivalry which is constantly shifting, and with controversy never far away, these fixtures are impossible to take your eyes off.
