Derby della Capitale

Lore & Background

Lazio was founded in 1900 in Piazza della Libertà, Borough of Prati and initially played at the Rondinella field in the upper-class quartiere of Parioli. Roma began playing at the Motovelodromo Appio and subsequently, when the new stadium was built after only two years, moved to the working-class rione of Testaccio. Thus, the Lazio ultras traditionally occupy the northern end (Curva Nord) and Roma's the southern end (Curva Sud) of the Stadio Olimpico. Making ironic remarks, known as sfottò, focused on the origins of both sets of fans, is a traditional way of teasing between the supporters of Lazio and Roma. Roma was founded in 1927 as a result of a merger between three teams: Roman, Alba-Audace and Fortitudo, initiated by Italo Foschi. It was the intention of Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini to create a unified Roman club to challenge the dominance of northern clubs such as Juventus. Thanks to the influence of Giorgio Vaccaro, a member of the National Fascist Party, Lazio was the only major team from Rome to be excluded from the merger and remain independent, thus a kind of rivalry emerged from the very early years of the coexistence in the same city. In 1979, Lazio fan Vincenzo Paparelli was hit in the eye and killed by a flare fired by a Roma fan from the opposite end of the stadium, becoming the first fatality in Italian football due to violence. On 17 December 2000, Lazio's Paolo Negro scored an own goal in a 1–0 Roma victory. Roma eventually went on to lift the scudetto that season, as Lazio finished the season in third place. Negro continues to be taunted by Roma fans for the goal. The derby on 21 March 2004 was abandoned four minutes into the second half with the score tied at 0–0, when a riot broke out in the stand; the president of the Lega Nazionale Professionisti, Adriano Galliani, ordered referee Roberto Rosetti to suspend the match. The riots began with the spreading of a rumour that a boy had been killed by a police car just outside the stadium. In fact, from last row of the stadium, some fans noticed in the square below a body covered with a white sheet. Later, medics who put the sheet explained that the boy had difficulty breathing, dangerously exacerbated by the air full of tear gas, and then the sheet was used as a filter. The denial by the police, spread through the speakers of the stadium, though it was not able to remove all doubt. Roma

In Their Own Story

The air inside the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona is thick enough to taste, a mixture of sulfur flares and ancient resentment. It is not just another Sunday; it is the night the Capital comes to call. On the pitch, the red-and-gold of Roma clashes with the azure of Napoli, but the colors represent something far older than kits. In the stands, the roar is deafening, a wall of sound that shakes the very foundations of the city. A Napoli striker holds the ball near the corner flag, eyes scanning the sea of blue faces behind him. He knows the weight of history on his shoulders—every tackle here is a statement, every goal a historical correction. The referee blows the whistle, and for ninety minutes, the hierarchy of Italian football is rewritten with every challenge.

Reader's Guide

The first derby was played on 8 December 1929, and ended 1–0 for Roma with a goal by Rodolfo Volk. Lazio won its first derby on 23 October 1932 with goals by Demaría (L), Volk (R) and Castelli (L). The biggest win in a derby was the 5–0 victory for Roma in 1933–34. The biggest win for Lazio was the 3–0 victory in 2006–07, 2018–19 and 2020–21. Roma holds the record for the most consecutive derby wins with five, while Lazio holds the record for most wins in a single season, winning four derbies in the 1997–98 season: two in the league (3–1 and 2–0) and two in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia (4–1 and 2–1). Only on one occasion was the derby played as a cup final, on 26 May 2013. Lazio won 1–0, winning their sixth Coppa Italia title. Francesco Totti has played the most derbies, with 44 for Roma. The player with the most derby appearances for Lazio is Giuseppe Wilson, with 23. Francesco Totti and Dino da Costa have scored the most goals in the derbies, with each player scoring 11 for Roma. The top scorer for Lazio in the derby is Silvio Piola, with 7 goals. Vincenzo Montella holds the record for the most goals scored in a single derby; on 11 March 2002, he scored four goals in a 5–1 Roma victory. Arne Selmosson, Aleksandar Kolarov and Pedro are the only three players which have scored in the derby for both teams. Francesco Totti has won the most derbies, with 15 for Roma. The second player is Daniele De Rossi who won 14 derbies as a Roma player and 1 as Roma coach.

Did You Know?

• The first derby was played on 8 December 1929, ending 1–0 for Roma with a goal by Rodolfo Volk.
• The biggest win in a derby was Roma's 5–0 victory in 1933–34.
• Vincenzo Montella scored four goals in a single derby on 11 March 2002, a record.
• Francesco Totti is the all-time leading goalscorer in the fixture with 11 goals for Roma.
• Only three players have scored for both teams in the derby: Arne Selmosson, Aleksandar Kolarov and Pedro.