Il Derby della Madonnina is the meeting of Milan’s two football teams, Associazione Calcio Milan and Football Club Internazionale di Milano, more commonly known as Milan and Inter. Named for the tiny gold Madonna that sits atop the Duomo’s tallest spire, the Milanese derby is arguably the most keenly contested and observed fixture in the Serie A calendar, with the result often directly influencing the destination of lo scudetto, Italy’s national championship. Except for two seasons in the early 1980s when Milan were relegated to Serie B, the two city neighbors have met twice each campaign for the last one hundred years. More recently the sides have been drawn together in the UEFA Champions League, a highly tense and prestigious competition which, combined with the controversies surrounding calciopoli and an increased number of player transfers between the two clubs, has only served to enhance this historic rivalry.

As featured on In Bed With Maradona (“…might well be the best thing you ever set eyes on.”)

Special thanks to I Got Cider In My Ear (interista) and Maglia Rossonera (milanista) for their tremendous work in sourcing and cataloging many of these wonderful original photographs.