Barcelona vs Real Madrid, Liverpool vs Manchester United, Olympique Marseille vs Paris Saint-Germain…These and many more rivalries in football have shown that the concept of derby is not limited to cities or regions, and that teams that want to dominate the football landscape in a country cannot but dislike each other despite the distance.
Historically, Inter and Juventus have been the two teams that want to be the biggest in Italy and dominate the Serie A. The source of their rivalry has nothing to do with political or social reasons, e.g. right-wing vs left-wing or proletarian vs aristocratic.
On a superficial level, these two have been at odds with each other throughout the history of the league. Before the 1970’s, which was an uninspiring decade for Inter, Juventus had the championship advantage as they won the Scudetto 13 times against Inter’s 10. Then, Inter’s stagnation period made La Vecchia Signora the sole ruler of the Italian league.
Moreover, until the Calciopoli scandal resulted in Juventus’ demotion, only Inter and Juventus were permanent members of Serie A as they never suffered a relegation. While these factors alone would enough for a fierce rivalry, some specific events from the past contributed to heat up the atmosphere.
Juventus have been belonging to the powerful Agnelli family since 1923, when Edoardo Agnelli, one of the leading names in the automotive industry with FIAT, took the club over. As soon as the purchase was completed, changes began to appear in Italian football, notably the transfer of Virginio Rosetta, an event known as the Rosetta Case.
As the Agnelli family got involved in football, Italy entered a period in which big teams became associated with powerful businessmen more and more frequently. The events that triggered the Juventus vs Inter feud were a consequence of that, and started in 1961.
The two teams met in Round 28 of the 1960/61 season. Inter travelled to Turin with a four-point gap from Juve, in an age when two points were awarded for victory. Due to the rivalry and the high interest in the match, the Stadio Comunale’s stands were packed, so there were moments when the home fans invaded the pitch. The referee had no option but call off the game after 29 minutes.
According to the rules, the match should have been awarded to Inter, and at first it did. However, Umberto Agnelli, who was both the president of Juventus and of the Italian Football Association (FIGC), ensured that the match would be replayed after the league was completed, by hook or by crook.
Coach Helenio Herrera, in his first season with Inter, took the field with the youth team to protest the decision. Juventus had already won the title so the match’s outcome was not going to make any difference. However, the game recorded the largest score in the history of the Derby d’Italia, as Juventus won 9-1.
Juve’s Omar Sivori scored six goals while Inter’s only goal was scored by 18-years-old Sandro Mazzola. That still didn’t help Sivori win the capocannoniere title, which went to Sergio Brighenti of Sampdoria.
No one doubted that Inter vs Juventus was the biggest match in Italy. However, unlike other derbies abroad, this match had no moniker. The help came from none other than Gianni Brera, arguably the most famous Italian football journalist ever. In 1967, he started to refer to the Inter vs Juventus matchup as the Derby d’Italia, and no one has ever dared contradict him.
Wars of Throne: The Agnelli and Moratti Families
While Juventus has traditionally been associated to the Agnelli Family, with time Inter also came under the patronage of a powerful Italian dynasty. In 1955, Italian oil tycoon Angelo Moratti bought the Nerazzurri.
After five unsuccessful years, the Varese-born businessman’s path crossed with Helenio Herrera, who had just left Barcelona. The Argentine coach’s ahead-of-his-time play became the milestone for Italian football and his legendary Inter team became known as the Grande Inter. Until 1967, when Herrera left for Roma, Inter won three Scudetto and, moreover, two European Champions Club Cups – something that Juventus would have to wait until 1985 to finally win.
Besides their sporting rivalry, Angelo Moratti and Gianni Agnelli were friends off the field. They also worked as partners in the company that publishes Corriere della Sera, the top-circulating Italian newspaper. According to Massimo Moratti’s (the son of Angelo) own memoirs, even the transfer of John Charles could not break their friendship.
Angelo suffered a heart attack while trying to get the Welsh player to wear the black and blue colors. Juve stepped in and brought Charles to Turin. Although Angelo told Gianni that he indeed took advantage of his illness, he proved that their friendship was still alive by having dinner with him.
The Modern Day Derby d’Italia
One year after Herrera’s departure, Angelo Moratti also left Inter. It took until 1995 for Moratti’s name to appear again at the helm of the Nerazzurri. This time, Angelo’s son Massimo was in charge. But despite boasting names like Ronaldo, Christian Vieri and Roberto Carlos, league titles usually continued to end up in Turin. Although the UEFA Cup won against Lazio in 1998 was valuable, it was obvious that they were in the shadow of Juventus. Indeed, La Vecchia Signora closed the 1990s with one Champions League, two UEFA Cups and three Serie A championships.
In the 2001/02 season, Moratti and Inter came very close to the Scudetto that he had dreamed of since the first day he took charge. Inter were enjoying the leadership with five games left before the end of the league. The closest rivals Roma were three points behind and arch-rivals Juventus had a six-point gap.
However, the tides started to turn in Round 30 as Inter lost to Atalanta at the Giuseppe Meazza and, two weeks later, they were held to a draw by Chievo in Verona. Inter entered the last week of the championship race in the lead with Juve in the second place, one point behind. But Inter incredibly lost 4-2 against Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico after taking the lead twice and failing to maintain their superiority. Juventus, on the other hand, took all three points on offer at Udinese and sealed the championship. It’s a trauma over which the Inter fans have still not gotten to present day.
In 2003, Gianni Agnelli passed a away and his brother Umberto followed one year later. The outbreak of the 2006 Calciopoli scandal dealt a massive blow to Juventus. The championship Juve won in the 2005/06 season was awarded to arch-rival Inter. Moreover, with Juventus wiped out of the Serie A, the black-and-blues had free room to dominate the league for the next few years. With the Treble won in 2010 under the leadership of Jose Mourinho, Massimo surpassed his father as the most successful Inter chairman ever.
At the time, Juventus were managed by Andrea Agnelli and John Elkann – Umberto’s son and Gianni’s grandchild respectively – and their loyalty to the club was highly questioned and compared to Massimo Moratti’s attachment to his father’s legacy.
Despite returning to Serie A after only one season in the second division, Juventus managed to come back to winning ways only in 2012, with their ex-player Antonio Conte in the dugout and Beppe Marotta as director of sports. In those same days, Massimo Moratti’s Inter was now deep in debt. The solution was to sell the team to Indonesian businessman Erick Thohir. The Derby d’Italia, which pitted two of Italy’s most powerful families against each other, had lost its unique kind.
By claiming the Scudetto in 2021 and ending a nine-year winning streak on the part of Juventus, Inter sparked a revival. Oddly enough, they were now coached by Antonio Conte and had Beppe Marotta in their management. Although Conte’s tenure at Inter was short-lived, the Nerazzurri showed they could go head-to-head with Juventus once again.
Three Unforgettable Inter vs Juventus Matchups
1. Juventus vs Inter 2-2 and 2-2 (February 4 and 12, 2004)
Two of Italy’s biggest clubs were paired in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia in the 2003/04 season. The first match at the Stadio Delle Alpi in Turin was a duel between Marco Di Vaio and Adriano, who both scored twice.
The second leg gave us everything a derby should offer. Brazil’s Adriano put Inter ahead with an early goal that made the whole Giuseppe Meazza Stadium stand up and applaude. The Old Lady managed to equalize with Igor Tudor before half-time. In the second half, Inter were down to 10 men as Ivan Cordoba received his marching orders
Near the end of normal time, captain Alessandro Del Piero put Juve ahead with a header. However, anything can happen in a derby and so, it was up to center back Daniele Adani to grab a late equalizer during stoppage time.
The match went to penalties and had its turning point in the fourth shootout. Inter’s top scorer, Christian Vieri, shockingly kicked the ball softly into the corner where goalkeeper Davide Chimenti was diving. Fabrizio Miccoli, who had assisted both of Juve’s goals, seized the opportunity and took the Old Lady to the Final.
2. Inter vs Juventus 1-1 (November 4, 2007)
Picture this: You have just won a Scudetto on the pitch, and it’s taken away from you and awarded to your arch-rivals. The following season, your rivals win the title after acquiring your best players from you. That’s exactly what Juventus went through in the post-Calciopoli days. Now, the black-and-whites wanted was to settle accounts with Inter and get back on their feet the first time they faced them again.
Along with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Patrick Vieria also travelled to the arch-rivals, although the French midfielder was not in the lineup for this game at the Delle Alpi. Julio Cruz’s opener and the clock ticking down demoralized the Juve fans as Inter seemed close to pulling off their revenge, but Mauro Camoranesi managed to prevent a derby defeat in Turin in the 77th minute.
3. Juventus vs Inter 2-4 (May 11, 2022)
Another Coppa Italia matchup, but this was a Final.
In 2021, Inter won the Scudetto, ending Juventus’ nine-year dominance. Things had not been going well for the Old Lady for some time. While their glamour still got them some good signings, the results didn’t follow along. Maybe winning the cup would do them good. Inter were behind city rivals Milan in the Scudetto race, so they needed this victory too.
With 10 minutes to go, Juventus were leading and close to lift the trophy, before Hakan Çalhanoğlu would send the game to extras time and Croatian veteran Ivan Perisic completed the upset, bringing the Coppa Italia back to Milano. A recent game, though already a classic.
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