Sporting Praia–Mindelense rivalry

The football rivalry between Sporting Praia and Mindelense was a rivalry in Praia in the island of Santiago, Cape Verde. The largest rivalries at the national level in the nation after Sporting's rivalry with Académica and Mindelense's rivalry with Derby.

History

The meeting occurred an each of the colonial and later national final matches. The first meeting between Sporting and Mindelense was in 1969, where Sporting Praia won their second colonial championship. The next challenge was in 1977 and Mindelense defeated Sporting in penalty shootouts. Sporting faced Mindelense again in 1988 and Mindelense defeated that club.^[1] As the finals was restored in 1997 after two years of the triangular system, Sporting defeated Mindelense in one of the 1997 finals. From 1998, the rivalry was outside the final and Sporting faced Mindelense in one of the matches that season.^[2] At the nationals, not until 2006 when Mindelense faced Sporting in a 3rd round match and Sporting defeated Mindelense 1-2.^[3] Sporting defeated Mindelense with a total of 3 goals scored in 2009.^[4] In 2011 when Mindelense faced Sporting again and was in the group stage at the second round where Mindelense defeated that club, they also challenged Sporting at the finals where Mindelense defeated 0-1 in the first match and was the last challenge at the championships.^[5] The most recent meeting was the 2014 Cape Verdean Super Cup where Mindelense defeated that club to win their only Super Cup title.^[6]

Cultural rivalry

Sporting Praia is an affiliate to Sporting Lisbon, a Portuguese club.

Sporting fans called the Mindelense fans Laranja Exército (the Orange Army).

Football rivalry

Mindelense is one of the most successful football (sooccer) club in Cape Verde, having won about 82 official titles (6 colonial, 2 national and 64 regional) compared to Sporting's 35 official titles (3 colonial, 9 national and 23 regional). On the other hand, Sporting performed in African competitions (no Capeverdean team has ever won an African title). Their greatest success is the participation in the First Round in the 1992 African Cup of Champions Clubs and the 2009 CAF Champions League. Sporting appeared once in the 2001 CAF Cup Winners' Cup and did not exceed the preliminaries. On the other hand, Mindelense participated in African competitions (no Capeverdean team has ever won an African title) where they scored two goals, Mindelense first appeared in the 1993 African Cup of Champion's Clubs. Académica Mindelo has never appeared in the continentals.

The Sporting-Mindelense rivalry is no relation to the one with Sporting Lisbon, as during the final four years of colonial rule, Mindelense faced Sporting Lisbon in the 1971 Portuguese Cup and the club lost 0-21, it was Mindelense's only challenge with that club. Mindelense has no club rivalry with Sporting Lisbon. Mindelense was the only Cape Verdean club that participated in the Portuguese Cup twice.

Honours

Partial matches list

Cape Verdean Football Championships

Cape Verdean Super Cup

Men in both teams

• Fredson Tavares
• Aires Marques

References

External links

• The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation