Kolkata Derby
The Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan on a matchday of Kolkata Derby in 2020 | |
| Other names | Boro Match (Big Match) |
|---|---|
| Location | Kolkata, West Bengal |
| Teams | |
| First meeting |
|
| Latest meeting | Mohun Bagan 1–0 East Bengal 11 January 2025 (Indian Super League) |
| Next meeting | Mohun Bagan v East Bengal [N/A] |
| Broadcasters | Sports18 (Indian Super League) |
| Stadiums | |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | Total: 401 Competitive: 375 |
| Top scorer | Bhaichung Bhutia (19) |
| All-time series | Total: East Bengal: 137 Mohun Bagan: 135 Drawn: 129 Competitive: East Bengal: 132 Mohun Bagan: 124 Drawn: 119 |
| Largest victory | East Bengal 5–0 Mohun Bagan 30 September 1975 (IFA Shield Final) |
| Largest goal scoring | Mohun Bagan 5–3 East Bengal 25 October 2009 (I-League) |
| Longest win streak | Mohun Bagan (8) (2019–2023) |
Location of the two teams in Kolkata, as well as Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, the shared home ground of the two clubs. | |
The Kolkata Derby (locally known as "Boro Match") is the football match in Kolkata, between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. The rivalry between these two teams is over 100 years old, and the matches witnessed large audience attendance and rivalry between patrons. It is considered to be one of the biggest Asian footballing rivalry. The first match was played on 8 August 1921 in Cooch Behar Cup and latest match of this historical derby was played on 11 January 2025 in Indian Super League. The Kolkata Derby is considered to be greatest derby in Asian Football and also one of the biggest derbies in the world.
The two clubs meet at least 3 times a year, twice in the Indian Super League and once in the Calcutta Football League. Often these two clubs met in other competitions like the Durand Cup, IFA Shield, or Super Cup.
Both clubs have large and dedicated fan bases around the world, and represent a specific class of Bengali people, Mohun Bagan represents people existing in the western part of Bengal (known as Ghotis), while East Bengal is primarily supported by people hailing from the eastern part of pre-independence Bengal (known as Bangals). Culturally, this derby is very similar to the Scottish Professional Football League's Old Firm derby, since a majority of the Mohun Bagan supporters represent the 'nativist' population (similar to Rangers) and a majority of the East Bengal fans represent the 'immigrant' population (similar to Celtic). The celebrations of a derby win is traditionally marked with dishes prepared from either ilish or golda chingri, depending on which team wins. The East Bengal supporters celebrate their win with ilish courses, being associated to the eastern region of Bengal (now Bangladesh), where as the Mohun Bagan fans celebrate with courses of golda chingri.