Rivalries Revealed

Sunday’s Manchester derby saw Manchester City humiliate Manchester United in one of the most one-sided ties between the two teams in history.

This made us think about the biggest of big rivalries, not only in sport but in all walks of life.

Ferrari vs. Lamborghini
Two of the biggest names in the production of glamorous and expensive Italian motor cars have a rather strange back story.

Ferrari was founded in 1947 and quickly gained a reputation which it still holds today; one of high-performance as well as sleekness and beauty. Ferrucchio Lamborghini started his venture in the world of automobiles as a tractor engineer. Having driven Ferrari’s on occasion, Lamborghini thought there were some design faults.

Upon offering his own mechanical expertise to Ferrari, he was promptly turned away by the powers that be. Quickly after this, Lamborghini set up his own company making sports cars which, to this day, rival Ferrari.

Coca Cola vs. Pepsi
Amazingly Coca Cola was first sold as long ago as 1886, and quickly became one of the most recognisable brands in the world. Pepsi came about 12 years later and ever since the two have fought fiercely for superiority.

Both are often synonymous with concepts such as globalisation and consumerism, and their rivalry goes well beyond what you find in their respective bottles. The sporting world (Coca-Cola sponsored the Olympic Games at one point) and the art world (Andy Warhol’s famous work) have both been tapped into by these advertising giants.

For the first time in 2006, Pepsi surpassed Coca-Cola in market capitalization, 108 years on from their formation. Now that’s perseverance.

Oxford University vs. Cambridge University

The two biggest names in British academia have 800 years of history behind them, and the rivalry is about the same (and in various forms). Scholarly, the two have fought for academic breakthroughs, and sportingly, the Oxbridge annual boat race has become a national event that attracts millions of viewers. There are also annual rugby, football and cricket matches between the two rivals.

Oasis vs. Blur
This is arguably the biggest band rivalry the musical world has ever seen, and is what many people think of when they think back to the music of the 1990’s.

Oasis were the cocky northerners that embodied the Manchester music scene of the time. Blur were ‘posher’ Southerners who epitomised all that was good in the capital’s thriving music scene.

What would ensue was a battle between the two biggest names in modern British music. Though admittedly much of the hype was caused by the media, a few unpleasantries were exchanged between members of the two bands.

Oasis released ‘Roll With It’ on the same day Blur released ‘Country House’, with Blur being victorious and reaching the number one spot that week. However Oasis would have the last laugh, with their second album ‘What’s the Story? (Morning Glory)’ becoming the third biggest selling album of all time.

Sporting Rivalries
There are too many sporting rivalries to pick a ‘biggest’ one. Manchester Utd vs. Manchester City, Everton vs. Liverpool, Torquay United vs. Exeter City in football, Yorkshire vs. Lancashire in Cricket, Hull vs. Hull KR in Rugby League, every boxer that’s ever fought another boxer…the list goes on. But what is certain is that these rivalries are always fascinating, in whatever walk of life they come.