Ranking The 5 Biggest Rivals Of Newcastle United
1. Sunderland
It was inevitable that the Tyne-Wear derby was going to top this list and for good reason. These two sides have been going at it since 1883, and you can sense the history behind the rivalry and what it means to each set of fans every time they take the field.
The history of the Tyne-Wear derby is a modern-day extension of a rivalry between Sunderland and Newcastle that dates back to the English Civil War when protestations over advantages that merchants in Royalist Newcastle had over their Wearside counterparts led to Sunderland becoming a Parliamentarian stronghold.
Sunderland and Newcastle again found themselves on opposite sides during the Jacobite risings, with Newcastle in support of the Hanoverians with the German King George, and Sunderland siding with the Scottish Stuarts.
It gets intense whenever these clubs meet, and sometimes it even gets violent, but ultimately, this rivalry is one of the greatest spectacles in world football.
The first meeting of the two sides took place in 1883, with the first competitive fixture being an 1888 FA Cup tie, which Sunderland won 2–0. To date, both sides have won on 53 occasions while sharing 50 draws.
Checkout: 10 Players Who Played For Both Newcastle And Sunderland