![\"Celtic](\"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Celtic-vs-Rangers-1.jpeg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nTalk about diving straight in at the deep end! The Old Firm Derby at Ibrox is confirmed for the 2nd of January, and it\u2019s only one of football\u2019s oldest<\/a>, most charged and historic rivalries! This rivalry dates back to 1888! It\u2019s no disagreement between small fry either, between them, Celtic and Rangers have won an eye-watering 120 Scottish league titles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You can\u2019t ignore Celtic\u2019s dominance in recent years, but Rangers have taken points in three of the last five league derbies at Ibrox. The stakes couldn\u2019t be higher, and the atmosphere? Let\u2019s just say it\u2019ll be loud enough to rattle your TV speakers! It would be fair to say this clash isn\u2019t just about three points – it\u2019s about identity, history, and, let\u2019s be honest – bragging rights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s get into the nitty-gritty. Celtic\u2019s Kyogo Furuhashi<\/a> has been a goal-scoring machine. If I were on the Rangers defense, you bet I would be having sleepless nights trying to dream up ways of trying to contain him. With both teams desperate for a win, this game feels destined for fireworks. Whether that\u2019s goals, tackles flying in, or the odd scuffle – it wouldn\u2019t be the Old Firm without one – this is going to be one to watch (possibly through your fingers).<\/p>\n\n\n\n The UK is always home of the fiercest derbies, but they sure seem to be getting more than their fare share this January! The North London Derby is always a spectacle, and this year\u2019s meeting at the Emirates has the makings of a classic. It\u2019s been going since 1909 (when tickets cost a mere sixpence). Would you trade the quality of today\u2019s football for the ticket prices of yesteryear? Sometimes I wonder! <\/p>\n\n\n\n In more recent history, Arsenal haven\u2019t lost<\/a> to Spurs at the Emirates in the league for nearly seven years. But history doesn\u2019t win games, and Spurs\u2019 newfound confidence might just make this one a bit more unpredictable than usual. Arsenal are gunning for the title (pun intended), and their front line of Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka has been running riot. Spurs, though, are no pushovers under Ange Postecoglou. Their counterattacking setup – masterminded by the silky James Maddison and lethal Heung-min Son – has been giving defenders nightmares all season. As for betting? Arsenal are strong favorites, but a high-scoring affair<\/a> with both teams finding the net could be where the smart money\u2019s at – Betway’s football betting odds<\/a> puts this at 1.60.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Heading across the sea to Andalusia<\/a> now and another fiery rivalry is penned for the 30th March. The stakes here aren\u2019t just about league positions; they\u2019re about local pride. Did you know this rivalry once saw an on-field brawl during a Copa del Rey match <\/a>in 2007 that resulted in the game being abandoned? Yes, this rivalry is a fiery one!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thankfully, things have calmed down since (mostly), but this is still a derby where tempers flare. Real Betis and Sevilla always cause emotions to run as high as the stakes when they get together, so this is one where you won\u2019t want to turn your TV screen off. In fact, the drama tends to come later on in these games, so seriously, wait until after the final whistle! <\/p>\n\n\n\n For me, Betis\u2019 Luiz Henrique will be the man to watch, while Sevilla\u2019s veteran midfield might just decide the tempo. Oh, and if you\u2019re the betting type, a draw has proven a popular outcome in recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the historic battles of the Old Firm to the pure animosity of El Gran Derbi, January\u2019s derbies are a reminder of why we love football! Rivalries like these transcend tactics and stats. Clear your diary, grab your snacks, and settle in for a month of unmissable action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" January isn\u2019t just for shaking off the post-holiday blues – any good football fan will tell you that! It\u2019s a month when rivalries across Europe\u2019s biggest leagues reach boiling point. From ancient grudges to more modern clashes, there\u2019s nothing quite like a derby to get the temperature rising. We\u2019ve picked out some of the fiercest…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5108,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5102","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-soccer"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":1,"label":"Soccer"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Unpicking-The-Most-Exciting-Derbies-in-January-1024x536.jpg",1024,536,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Toby Pearson","author_link":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/author\/soccer\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":1,"name":"Soccer","slug":"soccer","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":504,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1,"category_count":504,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Soccer","category_nicename":"soccer","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5102","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5102"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5102\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5243,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5102\/revisions\/5243"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5102"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}North London Derby: Arsenal vs. Tottenham (January 14, 2025)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"Arsenal](\"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Arsenal-vs-Tottenham-1024x730.jpeg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nEl Gran Derbi: Real Betis vs. Sevilla (March 30, 2025)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"Real](\"https:\/\/soccerballworld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Real-Betis-vs-Sevilla-1024x1024.jpeg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n