The Superclásico (Superderby) is the football match in Argentina between Buenos Aires rivals River Plate and Boca Juniors. It derives from the Spanish usage of "clásico" to mean derby, with the prefix "super" used as the two clubs are the most popular and successful clubs in Argentine football. In fact, the term 'Clásico' originated in Argentina, particularly with this match up and it was later exported to other countries such as Spain and Mexico. According to some statistics, they command more than 70% of all Argentine football fans between them.
The Superclásico is known worldwide as one of the fiercest and most important derbies. In April 2004, the English newspaper The Observer put the Superclásico at the top of their list of "50 sporting things you must do before you die", saying that "Derby day in Buenos Aires makes the Old Firm game look like a primary school kick-about", and in 2016 the British football magazine FourFourTwo considered it the "biggest derby in the world". That same year The Daily Telegraph ranked this match as the "biggest club rivalry in world football", and the Daily Mirror placed it number one in the top 50 football derbies in the world, above El Clásico between Barcelona and Real Madrid, in 2017.
Contents
History
Origins and background
The two clubs Boca and River Plate both have origins in La Boca, the working class dockland area of Buenos Aires, with River being founded in 1901 and Boca in 1905. River, however, moved to the affluent district of Núñez in the north of the city in 1925. Since then, Boca Juniors has been known as the club of Argentina's working class or the people's club, with many Boca fans coming from the local Italian immigrant community. Boca fans are actually known as "Xeneizes" ("Genoese"). By contrast, River Plate became known by the nickname, Los Millonarios (The Millionaires), with a supposedly upper-class support base. Both clubs, however, have supporters from all social classes.
By 1913, both clubs had their fields in La Boca and had not won any league, being also far away from the popularity that would come after. The most known Argentine football rivalry until then had been Alumni–Belgrano A.C. (both clubs from Belgrano) until Alumni disbanded in 1911 and Belgrano disaffiliated from the AFA. Racing Club de Avellaneda became the first of the Big Five when that same year won the first of their seven consecutive league titles.
Before their first official match, Boca and River had played two friendlies (1908 and 1912). River Plate's nickname was Darseneros (the most popular Millonarios came in 1931). The first official match of the rivalry, the 1913 Superclásico, was played on August 24, 1913 at Racing Club Stadium, with River winning 2–1. 7,000 spectators attended the match, and goals were scored by Cándido García and Antonio Ameal Pereyra (River) and Marcos Meyer (Boca).
The Superclásico is particularly noted for the passion of the fans, with what the BBC describe as "a sea of colourful flowing banners, screams and roars, chanting, dancing and never-ending fireworks". Both sets of supporters sing passionate chants aimed at their rivals, often based on popular Argentine rock band tunes. Each stadium, Boca's La Bombonera and River's El Monumental are known to bounce with the simultaneous jumping of the fans. At times, the matches have been known to end in fights between the "barra brava" (violent factions) of both sides or with the police.
Boca fans refer to River supporters as "gallinas" ("chickens") claiming the lack of guts of River players. Despite the fact that their club traces back its roots to La Boca, River fans refer to their Boca rivals as "los chanchitos" ("little pigs") because they claim their stadium, located in the less affluent La Boca area, smells most of the time, as well as "bosteros" ("manure collectors"), a reference to the smell of a polluted river in La Boca. Another infamous slur, coined in the late 1990s over remarks of Boca's forward Diego Latorre, is to brand Boca Juniors as "The Cabaret", due to the alleged aspiration of some players to steal the limelight.
Puerta 12 tragedy
On June 23, 1968, in El Monumental, after a 0–0 match between the two teams, 71 fans were killed in a crush at gate 12, with 150 fans left injured. The disaster was the worst incident in the history of Argentine football and the majority of the dead were teenagers and young adults; the average age of the victims was 19. There are various claims as to what exactly happened that day. Some claim that the disaster happened after Boca Juniors fans threw burning River flags from the upper tiers of the stadium, causing a stampede of their own fans in the lower tier.
Others claim that it happened after River fans arrived at the Boca section, causing the stampede of the visiting fans. Yet others claim that gate 12 was locked, or would not open at the time, and that the fans at the back did not hear the ones at the front telling them to stop coming in. William Kent, River's former president, claimed that the police were the culprits, as they began repressing Boca fans after they had thrown urine at them from the stands. Some witnesses claim that the turnstiles to the exit were blocked by a huge iron pole.
After three years of investigation, a government inquiry found no one guilty, much to the disappointment of the families of the victims. Since the tragedy, the gates at El Monumental have been identified by letters instead of numbers.
At the end of the 1968 season, the 68 football clubs in the Argentine Football Association collected 100,000 pesos for the families of the deceased.
River's 2011 relegation to 2018 Greater Final
Since the turn of the century, the rivalry has intensified to different levels. A series of fierce meetings and violent events rekindled international attention to the derby.
Boca eliminated River in the 2000 Copa Libertadores and 2004 Copa Libertadores, winning the title in 2000, 2001 and 2003, and reaching the finals in 2004. Moreover, in June 2011, River was relegated for the first time in its history.
Since its promotion in 2012, River eliminated Boca in the 2014 Copa Sudamericana, 2015 Copa Libertadores, 2017 Supercopa Argentina, 2018 Copa Libertadores, and the 2019 Copa Libertadores, lifting the trophy on all of those occasions, except the 2019 Copa Libertadores.
During the 2015 Copa Libertadores Round of 16, River Plate players were attacked at half time by a Boca fan that used pepper spray as the players were entering the dressing rooms. As a result, the game was suspended and CONMEBOL opened disciplinary proceedings on Boca. At the time of the attack, River was winning the series 1–0. As a result of the incident, Boca were disqualified from competition in the tournament and were faced with sanctions imposed by from CONMEBOL. River Plate, on the other hand, advanced to the quarterfinals and would later go on to win the Copa Libertadores.
In the 2018 Copa Libertadores Finals, the bus carrying Boca's players to the El Monumental was attacked by River fans who threw large objects after the police withdrew from the zone. The game was suspended and despite Boca's requests to have River disqualified, the game was moved to Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. After drawing 2–2 at La Bombonera and losing its home field advantage, River famously won the game 3–1 after extra time (5–3 on aggregate). Through the series, Boca was always ahead until the extra time of the return leg. Given the rivalry and the stage, and the fact of having been played in Europe, the 2018 Copa Libertadores Finals gathered unusual attention outside South America.
Statistics
Overall record
As of 19 April 2026. Only official matches are included.
Notes
Primera División matches
Includes only matches in the Primera División since their first official game in 1913.
Notes
Keys
National cups
The list below includes matches in national cup competitions. The club name in bold indicates a win. The score is given at full-time, in the goals columns the goal scorer and time when goal was scored is noted.
Notes
Keys
Copa Libertadores
These are only matches in the Copa Libertadores, club name in bold indicate win. The score is given at full-time, in the goals columns the goal scorer and time when goal was scored is noted.
Notes
Keys
Other international cups
These are only matches in other international cups. The club name in bold indicates a win. The score is given at full-time, in the goals columns the goal scorer and time when goal was scored is noted.
Notes
Keys
Friendly matches
List of all the non-official games played since their first match ever in 1908:
Notes
Keys
Single eliminations between the two rivals
As of 2021, 21 single eliminations between Boca Juniors and River Plate had been played, three of them tournament's finals. River holds the upper hand, with 13 wins over Boca.
1915 Copa Competencia: Boca 1–1 River; River 4–2 Boca (River won)
1918 Copa Competencia: River 1–0 Boca (River won)
1937 Primera División: River 5–3 Boca (River won)
1942 Copa Adrián C. Escobar semifinal: River 0–0 Boca (River won 3–2 on corner kicks)
1946 Copa de Competencia Británica semi-final: Boca 2–0 River (Boca won)
1969 Metropolitano semifinal: River 0–0 Boca (River won)
1972 Nacional semifinal: River 3–2 Boca (River won)
1976 Nacional final: Boca 1–0 River (Boca won)
1989 Liguilla Pre-Libertadores requalifying final: River 0–0 Boca; Boca 0–0 River; Boca 1–2 River (River won)
1993 Copa Centenario: Boca 0–0 River; River 1–0 Boca (River won)
1994 Supercopa Libertadores: River 0–0 Boca; Boca 1–1 River (Boca won 5–4 by penalty shoot-out)
2000 Copa Libertadores quarterfinals: River 2–1 Boca; Boca 3–0 River (Boca won)
2004 Copa Libertadores semifinals: Boca 1–0 River; River 2–1 Boca (Boca won 5–4 by penalty shoot-out)
Players who have played for both clubs
List of 102 players who have played for Boca Juniors and River Plate
Players who played for one club in youth career and for rival club in senior career
Carlos Peucelle (youth career Boca Juniors, senior career River Plate)
Ernesto Grillo (youth career River Plate, senior career Boca Juniors)
Mariano Pavone (youth career Boca Juniors, senior career River Plate)
Milan Borjan (youth career Boca Juniors, senior career River Plate)
Nicolás Sánchez (youth career Boca Juniors, senior career River Plate)
Matías Marchesini (youth career River Plate and Boca Juniors, senior career Boca Juniors)
Facundo Colidio (youth career Boca Juniors, senior career River Plate)
Coaches who worked at both clubs
Renato Cesarini (also was a player of River Plate)
Ferenc Plattkó
José D'Amico
Vladislao Cap (also was a player of River Plate)
Néstor Rossi (also was a player of River Plate)
Alfredo Di Stéfano (also was a player of River Plate)
Ángel Cappa (assistant coach at Boca Juniors, manager at River Plate)
José Varacka (also was a player of River Plate)
Juan Carlos Lorenzo (also was a player of Boca Juniors)
Héctor Veira
César Luis Menotti (also was a player of Boca Juniors)
Played for one club and coached the rival club
Rogelio Domínguez (River Plate as player, Boca Juniors as coach)
Adolfo Pedernera (River Plate as player, Boca Juniors as coach)
Miguel Ángel López (River Plate as player, Boca Juniors as coach)
Claudio Borghi (River Plate as player, Boca Juniors as coach)
José Manuel Moreno (River Plate and Boca Juniors as player, Boca Juniors as coach)
Francisco Sá (River Plate and Boca Juniors as player, Boca Juniors as coach)
J.J. López (River Plate and Boca Juniors as player, River Plate as coach)
River's greatest moments
August 24, 1913: River won the first official Superclásico 2–1.
October 19, 1941: The River team of the 1940s known as "La Máquina" beat Boca 5–1, their biggest win over Boca, on their way to the Argentine championship.
July 19, 1942: River won 4–0, equaling their biggest win over Boca.
November 8, 1942: River came back from 2–0 down to a 2–2 draw, clinching the championship of that year in the home of their archrivals for first time in history.
December 8, 1955: River won the second championship at La Bombonera after a 2–1 victory over Boca.
February 10, 1966: River won 2–1 at El Monumental in a match for the 1966 Copa Libertadores, in the first ever meeting of the clubs in international competitions.
October 15, 1972: River came back from 4–2 down to win 5–4 in the highest scoring Superclásico in history.
November 9, 1977: River came back from 1–0 down in La Bombonera to win 2–1 with a last minute goal from a 40 meters dash of Pedro Alexis González, securing River's top position in the 1977 Metropolitano championship, which they won in the next round.
April 6, 1986: In a game remembered for being played with an orange ball, River won 2–0 at La Bombonera right after winning the 1985–86 championship.
July 27, 1989: River won 2–1 the re-qualifying final of the 1989 Liguilla pre-Libertadores preventing Boca's qualification for Copa Libertadores 1990.
July 18, 1993: River won 1–0 in José Amalfitani Stadium, with a Walter Silvani's golden goal, to eliminate Boca from the Copa Centenario, a tournament that was to commemorate AFA's 100 years since its foundation. It was the first and only Superclásico decided with a golden goal.
Boca's greatest moments
August 2, 1908: Boca won the first Superclásico on record 2–1.
December 23, 1928: Boca defeated River 6–0, the biggest win in Superclásico history, with two goals from Domingo Tarasconi, Roberto Cherro and Esteban Kuko.
May 19, 1959: After 18 years Boca avenged their 5–1 defeat by River with a 5–1 win at La Bombonera with two goals from Jose Yudica.
December 9, 1962: Boca defeated River 1–0 at La Bombonera to secure the top position of 1962 championship, which they won in the next round. This match is well remembered by Boca's fans, because Antonio Roma stopped a penalty kick by Delem in the final minutes of the match.
December 14, 1969: Despite River's recovery from a 0–2 down, Boca won the national championship in the home of their arch-rivals after a 2–2 drawn.
February 3, 1974: Carlos García Cambón scored four goals on his Boca debut in a 5–2 win, the most goals scored by a single player in the Superclásico. It was also Boca's second successive 5–2 win.
December 22, 1976: Boca won the first ever final between the two clubs 1–0 to claim the 1976 Nacional championship.
April 10, 1981: Boca won 3–0 on their way to winning the 1981 Metropolitano championship, with a famous goal scored by Maradona against Ubaldo Fillol.
March 7, 1982: Boca won 5–1 at El Monumental, in the 1982 Nacional championship, the biggest away win in the history of the Superclásico. Due to a contractual conflict, River played the match with youth players.
February 27, 1991: Boca came back from 3–1 down to win 4–3 in the highest scoring Superclásico in Copa Libertadores history.