CARSON, Calif. -- Some call it The Los Angeles Derby. Others prefer the more polarizing El Tráfico. Whatever you call it (I, for one, vote El Tráfico) the rivalry between the LA Galaxy and LAFC holds a singular distinction: the best rivalry in the MLS.
In fact, I’ll go one further: El Tráfico is among the best rivalries in American professional sports.
In just seven short seasons this fixture has become the league’s definitive must-watch game. And Saturday night, at Dignity Health Sports Park, was no different. A sell-out crowd. A come-from-behind victory. Cards. Controversy. And six goals.
It’d be remarkable if it wasn’t so expected.
From their very first meeting, the exceptional has been the norm. In one of the greatest games in MLS regular season history, the greener-than-grass LAFC found themselves three goals up in the 60th minute, away from home. Then came Zlatan.
In what was his first MLS appearance, Ibrahimović scored two goals (including a ridiculous 45-yard volley) to help the Galaxy pull off a 4-3, come-from-behind thriller.
The following year, there was Zlatan part II. This time, the talismanic forward providing a hat trick in a dramatic 3-2 victory. Later that season, the rivalry’s playoff debut resulted in a 5-3 goalfest and LAFC’s first victory. Since then, there’s been the blockbuster 6-2 LAFC win, US Open Cup dominance by the Galaxy, and Rose Bowl games with record-breaking attendance (something the league should try their hardest to make tradition). All while trading jabs with such consistency that neither team can claim superiority.
Going into Saturday’s matchup, El Tráfico was as tight as could be. The two sides shared identical records against each other (9 wins, 5 draws), with nearly identical goals-scored (49-48, in favor of LAFC) while averaging a combined 4.2 goals per game.
Statistically speaking, there’s no rivalry that comes close. In any league.
In a broader sense, here are two teams from the same city, in the same conference (currently first and second), producing the closest thing to guaranteed drama that sports can offer. Be it Giants - Eagles, Yankees - Red Sox, or Lakers - Celtics, no rivalry in America (at least at the professional level) ticks the same boxes.
But of course, rivalries aren’t box-ticking exercises. Nor are they really about statistics. What makes rivalries special are other, more complex factors. Things like geography. Pride. Culture.
While the LA Derby might be young, its roots are deep and complex, born from notions of (dis)respect, insecurity, and identity. Both fan bases feel they represent the ‘real’ LA. Both have chips on their shoulders. And, over an hour before kickoff, both were already singing at the top of their lungs.
While to some this represents the contrived enthusiasm often leveled at MLS supporters, compared to other American sports, it’s exceptional. The flares, the tifos, the chants, the dancing: Americans are beginning to realize there is no atmosphere quite like a soccer atmosphere.
And only 15 minutes into the game, that atmosphere found its way onto the field.
After a scintillating run that saw him beat multiple defenders, Denis Bouanga slotted the ball home between Galaxy goalkeeper, John McCarthy’s legs. LAFC suddenly found themselves up 0-2. But Bouanga wasn’t finished, deliberately taunting the home crowd with an extended celebration.
For a while, it worked. The 3252’s lungs took over, while songs from the Galaxy end sopped for the first (and only) time all night.
Then the second half came. And along with it, everything that makes this rivalry great.
In the span of two minutes, the Galaxy equalized through two fantastic goals. One a twisting and turning effort from Dejan Joveljic, the other a 20 yard rocket by Edwin Cerillo - both finding the same top corner.
The crowd absolutely erupted. The team too. Riqui Puig (who was all over the midfield from the opening whistle) celebrated by urging the fans on. Then, shortly after the restart, he found himself in a heated exchange with LAFC’s Olivier Giroud. It only riled fans up further.
As the hostility began to rise, cards began to fly. The second half saw six in total, including a (deserved) red for LAFC’s Lewis O’Brien. Frustration had been building since the Galaxy took the lead in the 67th minute, with perhaps the best goal of the night. An overlapping run, a visionary cut-back, and a deft touch from Joveljic put the Galaxy ahead. It was a thing of beauty, and one that sent the crowd into a frenzy.
Then, to top it all off, an 85th minute, easy-on-the-eye fourth goal from the deserving Riqui Puig. After the game, Puig said “I was waiting [all week] for today.” He certainly played like it.
And once again, El Trafico delivered.
It’s hard to make sense of why this rivalry never disappoints, but the hunger for bragging rights certainly seems a major factor. Emphasizing the weight of this fixture, Greg Vanney called the night’s win “maybe the proudest moment” in his time as LA Galaxy manager.
Meanwhile, Galaxy supporters couldn’t wait to belittle their crosstown rivals with insults. Some as crude as chants of “LAFC are p**a!”. Others, more nuanced.
One LA Galaxy supporter, Jose, offered a backhanded assessment. “Let’s get real, man. When all is said and done, they [LAFC] are the Clippers, and we’re the Lakers. You know what I mean?” (Clipper fans, one would imagine, do not know what he means.)
Interestingly, however, Jose was aware of how this characterization downplayed the rivalry itself. And he was quick to admit that, in his mind, the MLS still has a lot of growing to do compared to other leagues abroad. “What you see here, this is the atmosphere of an average game in the Premier League.”
It’s both a fair and cheap criticism (and one that perhaps speaks to a broader insecurity). Most American soccer fans are very (self) conscious of our game’s cultural cachet. There’s nothing ‘Real’ about Real Salt Lake. No reason for Miami to be ‘Inter’. And of course the LA Derby isn’t the Old Firm (nothing is).
But what the Eurocentric position fails to appreciate is that those cultures grew from similar performative contrivances. ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ didn’t inexplicably spill from the Kop one fateful Anfield day. It was deliberately picked up by manager Bill Shankley and spun into a story by the press. 60 years later, however, it’s part of the very fabric of Liverpool FC.
Indeed, the real point of contention when evaluating this rivalry, is that it has yet to establish itself in the wider American culture (something the AppleTV paywall seems to be inhibiting). No matter how exciting or dramatic El Tráfico might be, at just seven years old, people inevitably scoff at its immaturity.
In other words, the only real difference between the LA Derby and its more revered rivalries is history.
Make no mistake, history is important. It lends gravitas. Informs generations. Allows for happenstance to become traditions (like 'You'll Never Walk Alone') and traditions to become pastimes.
But in many ways, the newness of El Tráfico is the very thing that makes it so special. By not having the historical scale of Yankees - Red Sox, every game is legacy informing. History is being made in real time. And it shows.
Hopefully there’s more history to be made this season. Hopefully these two teams will meet again in the playoffs. Because if they do, rest assured: it is all but certain to be a classic.