The Derby de la Bretagne (, ''Brittany Derby''; also known as the Derby Breton () is a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

match. The match can potentially designate any match-up between two sporting football associations based in the historic province of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

; however, most of the time, it is employed by each club's supporters to mention a football match contested between major French clubs Stade Rennais and

FC Nantes Football Club de Nantes (; Gallo: ''Naunnt''), commonly referred to as FC Nantes or simply Nantes (), is a French professional football club based in Nantes in Pays de la Loire. The club was founded on 21 April 1943, during World War II, a ...

, even if this particular match is often referred to as the West Derby. The name of the derby derives from the fact that Rennes and Nantes are the two major clubs that are situated in the former province of Brittany. The derby may also refer to matches involving fellow Brittany clubs

FC Lorient Football Club Lorient Bretagne Sud (; commonly referred to FC Lorient or simply Lorient) is a French association football club based in Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town ('' commune'') and seaport in the Morbihan department of Brittany in we ...

En Avant Guingamp En Avant Guingamp (, en, Forward Guingamp), commonly referred to as EA Guingamp, EAG, or simply Guingamp (), is a professional football club based in the commune of Guingamp in France's Brittany region. The club was founded in 1912 and play i ...

, and Stade Brestois; however, the derby has been historically contested by Rennes and Nantes. Nantes and the current incarnation of Rennes, having previously been known as Stade Rennais Université Club, first met on 15 December 1963 in a league match, which the former team won 2–1. Due to each club's affiliation to the Breton heritage, the derby is regularly contested to decide "which city is the real capital of Brittany". Both clubs display their Breton identity proudly. Rennes supporters regularly display

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

symbols at Tribune Mordelles, where the notorious supporters' group Roazhon Celtic Kop are located, while Nantes often display the Bretagne flag in their primary colors, yellow and green. FC Lorient's status in the derby came about from their promotion to

Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...

at the start of the new millennium. Though the club were relegated after one season, it regained promotion for the 2006–07 season and have consistently stayed up, often finishing ahead of Nantes, who have been relegated twice since Lorient's arrival for the 2006–07 season. Since Nantes' fall to the second division and its inability to regain promotion, the derby is regularly contested by Rennes and Lorient. The derby took a notable rise following the 2–1 victory by Guingamp over Rennes in the 2009 Coupe de France Final. This was the first final since 1956 where both clubs were based in the same

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

and both clubs displayed their Breton culture proudly.

Statistics

See also

References

External links