Who are West Ham United’s rivals and why?
West Ham United are notorious for having rivalries with many different clubs.
The Hammers are a historic outfit in English football, from claiming to have won the World Cup in 1966 to winning the Europa Conference League under David Moyes in 2023, West Ham fans ensure they are known worldwide.
The chant “West Ham are massive” rings true to the fact that many teams dislike the East London side for a myriad of reasons, some of which are a lot more complicated than others.
West Ham are currently struggling under Graham Potter, but are always up for a fight against their biggest rivals when they come to the London Stadium.
Now, West Ham Zone delves into their biggest rivals and why the feud has only worsened over the years.
Millwall are West Ham’s biggest rivals
Ask any West Ham fan who their biggest rivals are, and almost all of them will say Millwall.
The Dockers derby is one of the fieriest derbies in the world, with the sides first meeting in 1899, where the Hammers, then known as Thames Ironworks, lost 2-1 in the FA Cup.
The rivalry stems back to historical conflicts in the shipyards during the Industrial Revolution, but tensions escalated during the 1926 Dockers’ Strike.
As a result, hooliganism exploded into life between these two fan bases, with the rise of groups such as the Inter City Firm and the Millwall Bushwackers epitomising the violence in English football in the 20th Century.
Rivalry with Millwall simmering down due to lack of games
The Dockers Derby has been dormant for over a decade now, with the last clash between the two coming in February 2012, when the Hammers secured a crucial 2-1 victory on their route to promotion back to the Premier League.
Since then, the two sides have remained distanced in their respective divisions, with Millwall even taking a two-year trip down to League One during that spell.
| Team | Wins |
| West Ham | 34 |
| Draw | 27 |
| Millwall | 38 |
Overall, the Lions have the historical edge in this fixture, although their last win came back in November 2004, with a 1-0 victory at the Den.
The next meeting between the two sides will be the 100th competitive clash, and will likely be a fiesty encounter given how long it has been since they met.
The next edition of the derby might not be far away either, with Millwall getting closer to gatecrashing the Championship play-offs, while West Ham are hovering around the relegation zone.
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