They're in town rivals. It's like the Mets/Yankees of Italian Serie A.

No, I know that they're rivals but was the game just a regular season game or what.

AA, there are no playoffs in Serie A, so it's not just Red Sox/Yankees (it's bigger than Mets/Yankees), but it also kept Inter from clinching the season championship. Roma is 3 points back with two games to play.

So it's like the biggest rivalry game you can think of, and the lesser team not only wins but potentially screws the upper team.

Yeah, it was over the top, but let's see. It'd be like the Terps not only beating UNC, but beating them in a game that potentially screwed them out of the ACC title. Times 20.

Ian

Gotcha. I need to brush up on my Soccer a bit.

Oh, one more tidbit. The win put AC Milan into fourth place, which qualifies them for the Champions League. That's worth screaming for most teams.

"No, I know that they're rivals but was the game just a regular season game or what."

I can understand not liking soccer, but at least do some research. There isn't a "regular season" from an American standard. The Serie A championship is decided by every team playing every other team twice (once home and away). Whoever has the most points wins the championship. Inter is in first place, Milan has had a very disappointing season. Milan's victory brings Inter within striking distance for Roma with two games to play. A month ago, Inter's lead looked insurmountable.

The nearest equivalent would have been something to the effect of a college football powerhouse with a loss (thus a disappointing season) knocking off their #1 ranked undefeated rival in the last week of the season, knocking that #1 team out of the BCS championship.

Is the reaction excessive? Probably. But, the guy is old, soccer fans are passionate, and Milan's victory was by far their largest accomplishment of the season.

It's a huge rivalry game, and in top flight soccer in any league not in the US there is no playoff system.

The worst teams get sent to a lower league but that's it.


There is a possibility here this is like a game where the fans commentate on site.....or the guy is a complete homer and the analyst lost a ton of money on this game.

It's soccer... who cares?

No professionalism on the old guy's part. That's just some awful announcing.

@Matt,

The rest of the world cares.

It's Europe, they're passionate about soccer.

What do you want? Joe Buck?

"It's soccer ... who cares"
Millions of people across the planet. Please remember there is a world beyond the United States.

there isnt a sports rivalry in america that can remotely touch these soccer rivalries.
until yankees and redsox fans start 1) throwing flares at the opposing teams, 2) paint animals in the teams colors and chuck them onto the field, and 3) light scooters on fire and throw them from the upper deck into the lower deck, us fans are still amateurs

It was a pretty good game. As a Roma fan, I was just as happy as that guy because we still have a chance at the title

youd have an even better chance if you didnt give up that dying minutes goal to the 48 year old zanetti when you were primed to beat them earlier this season

im still bitter about that one

And chants during the game like with Man Utd (homerism alert).

GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!!!!!

Yeah, there is nothing in America that comes within miles of how intense soccer rivalries are. You think we have atmosphere in the US. I present exhibit A: http://youtube.com/watch?v=LBBPoyXEOhM
and exhibit B: http://youtube.com/watch?v=8AInR7EZ-zo

Anyone else think that this guy in the sweater sounds like Chris "Maddog" Russo?

I completely forgot how crazy Fenerbahce fans are.

And yes, European soccer fans make American fans look timid. Flares, riots, racist slurs, and harmonized chanting are all par the course there.

As an Inter fan, this result greatly upset me. God damn rossoneri. Too bad they'll drop a few more points and Fiorentina will get the 4th spot.

Viva i neroazzuri!

Yeah, to clarify. I don't want to see American fans reach the point of shooting flares and starting riots, but I would like to see more in the way of unified chanting and singing instead of everyone just screaming random shit. Idk how well that works though, as there are too many breaks in other sports.

i think a lot of the violence is born out of the forces behind the rivlaries. be it the facists v progressives in el clasico, the religious war of celtic v rangers, or shit for an international war angle england v argentina. theres nothing in american sports that can breed that kind of hatred.
at the heart of it theres not much different between a yankee or red sox fan aside from geography and accent, theyre not going to kill each other

Mike, you are definitely correct on that front that there simply isn't that much to breed the kind of hatred soccer brings out.

When England plays Germany, the unified chant from the English is "Stand up if you won the war!" over and over. That kind of reminder about a war that took over 6 years of human existence is something that simply doesn't exist. European football is simply different because you have entirely separate nations going at it, not to mention the club rivalries in between each national league.

Sox/Yanks at Fenway will probably be the closest thing we'll see to the kind of crazy fans that exist in Europe.

New York Rangers fans used to have some great chants...anyone remember "Beat your wife, Potvin, Beat your wife!" or my personal favorite "Buy a Porsche, Hextall, Buy a Porsche!"

And of course:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=11MQnQ8QjJs

Damn, I love those people. And I really f**king hate Chelsea.

The best thing about this clip is that after the maniacally excited guy in the booth, they throw up a split screen with a determinedly serious looking guy in the studio (with people grinning and throwing up highfives around him)

It's great!

lovely!! too bad I can't blast it up in the flat....... Matt it's soccer who cares?????? Europe damnit!!!!!!


Yann
OL FAN (going for 7th championship title in a row along with the cup this year !!