Every football fan has had the argument. You're in the pub, someone calls Man Utd vs Liverpool a derby, and the table erupts. "They're 30 miles apart!" "It's the biggest game in English football!" "That doesn't make it a derby."
This site exists to settle it.
Is It A Derby? is an independent project that scores every possible matchup between 177 English football clubs — from the Premier League down to National League North and South — to determine whether they qualify as a genuine local derby.
The Derby Score is pure geography: how far apart are the grounds, adjusted for league tier and club density. A National League club in rural Norfolk gets a wider definition of "local" than a Premier League club in central London, because context matters.
The Rivalry Score is separate — it measures historical depth based on head-to-head meetings, how recently they've played, and how far back the fixture goes. This means Liverpool vs Manchester United can score 5/100 on geography but 100/100 on history. Two different truths, both honest.
For the full breakdown, see How It Works.
All 177 clubs are from the 2025/26 season. Distances are calculated as straight-line (Haversine) between grounds. Head-to-head data is compiled from publicly available sources including historical football archives and club records.
If you spot an error or think we've missed something, raise it on GitHub.
This site uses GoatCounter for analytics — no cookies, no personal data, no cross-site tracking. Your browsing is your business.
Is It A Derby? is a passion project, built and maintained independently. If you enjoy it, you can buy me a coffee.