Witnessing an encounter between Rome's rival football clubs is a great way to spend part of a trip to the Italian capital. But you might have to work hard to find tickets, writes MICHELE MARTINELLI
FOR MANY, a weekend in Rome is synonymous with beautiful monuments, the Vatican and intense espressos. For those who associate the Italian capital with sights such as St Peter’s Basilica and the Colosseum, it is easy to forget that the city is also home to two of the country’s biggest football clubs, AS Roma and SS Lazio.
Tomorrow, at the Stadio Olimpico, the two teams meet in the derby della capitale. This biannual clash between the city's premier teams, at the stadium both use as their home ground, is even more tense than usual, with both sides desperately needing points.
Roma are in first place but have to keep winning if they want to stay ahead of José Mourinho’s Inter, who trail by a single point. At the bottom of the league, Lazio are six points clear of the relegation zone and will be looking to beat their city rivals to salvage something from a disappointing season.
A trip to see such a passionate encounter is a great way to spend part of a visit to the Italian capital – and with an average attendance of about 39,000 for Roma and just 26,500 for Lazio, you’d think the 72,000-seater had plenty of room for visitors. Unfortunately, seeing a match at the Stadio Olimpico isn’t always as easy as turning up and buying a ticket.
Some Serie A games are considered crowd-control risks, so tickets are sold only to local residents – I once found myself running around the city trying to find tickets for a low-key encounter between Roma and Atalanta that had been classified as an “at risk” event.
The derby della capitaleis one of the few games where the stadium is likely to fill up, and if you watch it you'll see Roma supporters fenced in at one end of the stadium. There'll be more Lazio supporters this time, as it is, technically, a home game for them.
But even if the Stadio Olimpico often looks empty, don't be fooled: the teams' ultras– or notoriously obsessive fans – make up for what they lack in numbers with flares, banners and displays of raw passion seldom seen elsewhere. The curva sud, or southern end of the stadium, is where the die-hard giallorossifans gather; Lazio's biancocelestigroup at the northern end; in both, support reaches heights unseen in the rest of Europe.
It can look intimidating, and the fans are often portrayed as less than civilised – and all of this takes place in a stadium that was originally built as part of Mussolini’s plans for a sporting forum, and hosted several fascist rallies, including a visit from Hitler in 1938.
But it's exhilarating to join the fans. I climbed over the barrier separating the curva sudfrom the rest of the seating with the help of a steward. A few of the 20,000 dedicated supporters were clearly intoxicated, but it was no more intimidating than a trip to see an English team – in fact, the atmosphere was much better.
Why, given the debt they have waded into, Italian teams feel the need to withhold tickets from tourists is beyond me. Surely, with more than 35,000 seats going spare, and barriers separating the die-hard fans from the rest, the stadium is big enough to accommodate a few hundred tourists in the more expensive seats.
Once you have your seats you can look forward to a unique experience with some of the world's most passionate supporters. If you are at a Roma game, wonder as thousands sing – not shout – the Roman pop star Antonello Venditti's homage to his team, La Roma non si Discute si Ama– literally, Roma is not to be questioned, just loved – followed by Grazie Romaif the team wins.
So if you are in Rome for a weekend and fancy a display of relatively cheap league action, grab a doppio espresso and head to l’Olimpico for a heartpounding display of world-class football – unless Lazio are playing, that is.
Getting to a match
- There are several official ticket sales points. Giallorossi – supporters of the red-and- yellow team – can buy tickets at the AS Roma shop on Piazza Colonna or at an outlet listed on asromastore.it.
- Lazio fans have a slightly harder task, but it is easy enough to buy seats at shops around the city sporting Lottomatica logos, or at the stadium if it's not a big game, for between €30 and €100.
- Listicket.it is great for Serie A tickets. It has phone numbers, addresses and pick-up points for most league matches. If you don't mind paying extra for the joy of not having to organise anything, lastminute.com sells tickets. If all else fails, touts line up around the tram stop at Piazza Mancini and around the stadium. Be wary, as they offer no guarantees, just high prices.
- The easiest way to get to the stadium is to take metro line A to Ottaviano-San Pietro, then bus 32 to Piazzale della Farnesina.