Top Rivalries In International Football
Source: News18

Updated: 26 September 2022

Top 5 Biggest Rivalries In International Football. Football is an intense game and although it is the epitome of Sportsmanship and things that happen on the pitch stay on the pitch, some incidents and some players make things a bit too personal and that is how rivalries in football originate. However, this is not the sole reason why rivalries in Football exist. 

Especially in the case of International football, it is generally past match incidents and Political tensions between nations that worsen things on the ground as well. In this article, we are going to talk about 5 of the biggest International footballing rivalries, ranked in ascending order of rivalry. 

Also Read: Who Will Win FIFA World Cup 2022?

5. Germany vs Netherlands

Source: Bavaria Football Networks

Like many other footballing rivalries, this one too originated from political tensions between the two nations. Germany had occupied the Netherlands for over 5 years during the Second World War, destroying a major part of the nation. This naturally created a nationalistic hatred toward Germans for the dutch people. 

When the two nations finally met each other in the 1974 World Cup Final, the Netherlands were the clear favourite. Sadly, Germany ended up winning the match and it was followed by a period of national mourning for the Dutch people. 

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They finally got their emotional revenge in the 1988 European Champions where they defeated Germany in the Semi-finals. 

Ever since the rivalry between Germany and Netherlands has been one of the most fierce encounters in football history. 

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