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As the planet’s collective gaze once again transfixed itself upon Old Trafford for the visit of Liverpool on Saturday, another chapter was written in the history of the biggest fixture in world football.
The clash of Manchester United and their Scouse rivals surely surpasses all others for the sheer volume of interest it evokes, reflecting not the primacy of the Premier League in the football world but also the magic specific to this epic rivalry.
By virtue of the global saturation of the English Premier League, this is the match up that arrests the attention of the football public. From Dublin to Dubai, Lithgow to Lisbon, this is the competition that everybody follows.
On some recent travels, I met a Dutch Football fan who had driven from Rotterdam to Newcastle to see the locals take on Liverpool, such is the attraction of the English game.
Obviously mesmerised by the glamour of the English product, he articulated his passion: “In Spain, only two teams can win it, in France only one. Italy is boring. No one knows about Germany. The rest are crap. That is why I love England.”
Well said.
With supporters like this tuning in worldwide, it was no surprise when the dulcet tones of Martin Tyler informed his Sky Sports audience that the broadcast would reach 600 million households.
That’s how big the Premier League has become.
But why have these two teams risen above the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal, a more local rivalry than the two teams in red, to become the pre-eminent fixture in the English football calendar?
The obvious reason is the two club’s sheer success.
The combined 35 Leagues, 18 FA Cups and 8 European Cups provide enough silverware to command support from every corner of the globe – especially Asia.
Why else would United have approached Indian company Sahara and Saudi Telecom to replace their current shirt sponsors AIG?
Quite simply, everybody loves a winner, and there are no bigger winners than these prolific rivals.
But success alone does not define the character of this fixture.
As an Australian living in North West England, you can sense the hysterical desire of both Manchester and Liverpool to prove their superiority as cities. As Liverpool fans enjoy their title as European Capital of Culture ’08, on Saturday the Stretford End unfurled a banner reminding the travelling Kopites that Manchester held the far more enviable distinction of being Europe’s Capital of Trophies in the same year.
It is the same kind of intercity enmity that characterises clashes between Real Madrid and Barcelona, Ajax and Feyenoord, and closer to home, Sydney and Melbourne.
Unlike genuine local derbies between Liverpool Vs Everton and United Vs Man City which, in recent years, have assumed a David and Goliath tone, you cannot resist the lure of England’s two most successful clubs, and richly competitive cities, going hammer and tong for the three points.
This is the very best that world football has to offer, representing these two warring neighbours.
The best of Holland, France, Portugal, Brazil, Bulgaria, Serbia, Germany, Wales, Ireland, Korea, Finland, Italy, Spain, Israel, Argentina and Denmark handpicked for the enjoyment of the global audience.
Oh yeah, and England.
As Liverpool romped to a memorable 4-1 victory on Manchurian soil, one sensed that it was not just the North West which stopped to witness which city would enjoy bragging rights until the next meeting, but the entire globe.
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