10 Most Fearsome Rivalries In World Football
3. Roma - Lazio / "Derby Della Capitale"
The Eternal Citys Roma and Lazio share a stadium as well as a ferocious rivalry which stretches back generations.
Split along political and social ties with Lazio being the club of so-called wealthy elites and Roma representing the Roman working class, the Derby della Capitale is notorious for being Italys most volatile fixture. The atmosphere on derby day burns fiercely with the notoriously fascist ultras of Lazio crammed into the Curva Nord and Romas equally right-wing hardcore support occupying the Curva Sud.
Just over thirty years ago, Italy witnessed its first ever football-related fatality as a result of the Rome derby, after a fan was struck in the eye by a flare and later dying as a result of his injuries - an incident which further intensified the hatred between the two clubs.
The most recent notable dose of wild violence in this fixture came in the 2004/05 season when Romas ultras forced the game to be abandoned at half-time after a rumour spread the stands that police had run over and killed a Roman child in the lead up to kick off. The game spiralled into a vociferous battle between the two sets of supporters and it was reported that over 170 police officers were badly injured during the infamous melee.