Eternal derby (Croatia)
Eternal Derby at Stadion Poljud in 2006
|
|
| Other names |
Vječni derbi Hrvatski derbi |
|---|---|
| Locale |
 Croatia (Zagreb and Split) |
| Teams |
Dinamo Zagreb Hajduk Split |
| First meeting | 26 May 1946 |
| Latest meeting |
Dinamo Zagreb 0–2 Hajduk Split (2016–17 Croatian League) 22 April 2017 |
| Next meeting | TBD |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total |
210 official matches (171 league) |
| Most wins | Dinamo Zagreb (89) |
| Top scorer | Slaven Zambata (12) |
| Largest victory |
Dinamo Zagreb 0–6 Hajduk Split 1954–55 Yugoslav First League (3 April 1955) |
Eternal Derby (Croatian: Vječni derbi) also known as the Croatian Derby (Croatian: Hrvatski derbi), is the name given to matches between the two biggest and most popular Croatian football clubs Dinamo Zagreb and Hajduk Split.
The rivalry can be traced back to 1920s when Zagreb's Građanski and Hajduk often clashed in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia championships. After World War II, Građanski was disbanded by the authorities, and Dinamo Zagreb was formed to take its place, retaining its colours. The two clubs soon became part of the "Big Four" of Yugoslav football (the other two being Red Star Belgrade and Partizan Belgrade from Serbia) ever since the Yugoslav championship was established in 1946 (both clubs spent their entire existence playing top-flight football). This lasted until 1991, when Croatia declared independence so clubs started competing in the Prva HNL, which saw its first season being played in 1992. Since 1992 Dinamo and Hajduk won 23 out of 24 Croatian championship titles, as well as 19 out of 24 Croatian Cups, which makes them by far the most successful clubs in Croatia.
Due to various formats that were used in the Croatian championship (which currently employs a four-round robin format) and the cup competition format (which has teams playing two-legged fixtures even in the final game) and in addition to the games played in the Supercup, there can be anywhere from four to seven derbies per season. Since the first official match in 1946, and as of 17 December 2016, there have been 208 official derbies played in total, with Dinamo winning 89 and Hajduk 66 games, while 54 matches ended in a draw.
...
Wikipedia