2009-11-06 21:42:48 - this is the most enthusiastic Portuguese derby in the history of Portuguese football, every year always awaited by both cities, the hole country, and both club fans since the last second of the last game between them

forget everything you heard, read or seen about Portuguese football and the games and rivalries between benfica, porto and sporting matches...

As some pass the toll gate of highway A11, which links Braga and guimarães, and show their passport to the lady in the ticket window, that tired of that same joke over and over again, rolls her eyes and sighs

bored. Later ahead there are signs that reads "Guimarães is Spain", and other things less appropriate, in a sign announcing the end of the high-way concession and the beginning of the aleged birthplace of the first king of Portugal, Dom Afonso Henriques. The reference to Portugal neighboring country was added with spray in a very crooked letter. And barely in the city, the more resentful "Bracarenses" begin to ask for spanish traditional foods "tapas" and "tortillas" in each coffee they enter. And, yeah, thats the way it begins a day of true Portuguese football Derby. With the jokes as usual, ending up in the usual scenes of beatings and bus parties. Everything under the gaze of the old wall, where it remains in writing and without being affected by time: "Portugal was born here."

The rivalry between the two Minho clubs already has about a thousand years, but this last idea to call the guimarães fans "Spaniards" has less than two decades. In 90 decade, after guimarães lost against the rival team, the fans furious torched the car of the referee. On the following day and after having lost the opportunity to access the UEFA Cup, all under strong suspicion of having been harmed, a deranged fan had one more sign that could read: "To be treated like this, it is better to be Spanish". The epithet stuck, and since then so were baptized. The retaliation came after, and the Braguistas were baptized by the guimarães fans as "Moroccans", and no one never knew why...

But the story says that the controversial rivalry occurred because of priests. It seems that, before the constitution of Portugal as a country, Portucale County Count Henry settled in guimaraes and gave privileges to the land. The Archbishop of Braga did not like the difference in treatment, and wrote to Pope Innocent III to complain. The vimaranense burned everything they saw and the Bracarenses stoned them from there lands.

Rivalries aside, everyone agrees on the same aspect. A derby SCBraga versus guimaraes would not be the same thing if there was not this caricaturist rivalry.