English soccer's biggest grudge match is born from a controversial and resented US-style relocation

English soccer’s biggest modern-day grudge lucifer stems from a rare, U.S.-style squad relocation that harbors contempt and hatred much than 2 decades later.

The latest section of nan incendiary rivalry betwixt AFC Wimbledon and MK Dons will beryllium played retired connected Sunday successful nan first information of nan FA Cup, nan oldest knockout title successful world soccer.

The teams’ history includes off-field disorder, on-field brawls, interventions from authorities and mud-slinging that mightiness look petty to neutrals but couldn't beryllium much superior for nan protagonists.

“It really is nan North Carolina vs. Duke of (English) football,” said Sam Spencer, an American-based AFC Wimbledon fan.

It each goes backmost to 2002, erstwhile nan owners of Wimbledon FC — nan victor of nan FA Cup successful 1988 and a squad known arsenic nan “Crazy Gang” — went successful hunt of a amended location stadium and were allowed to uproot nan nine 90 kilometers (55 miles) from southbound London to Milton Keynes, a commuter municipality northbound of nan capital. It became known arsenic MK Dons.

Such a relocation is communal successful American sports — nan database of cities that person mislaid pro teams includes Oakland, San Diego, Seattle, Houston and Baltimore — but not successful England. It was regarded arsenic a betrayal by long-time fans of nan original Wimbledon team, who responded by forming a squad wrong weeks: AFC Wimbledon.

The phoenix nine started retired successful nan ninth tier, nan bottommost of nan English shot pyramid, and roseate quickly up nan convention system.

This season, AFC Wimbledon and MK Dons are successful nan aforesaid section — fourth-tier League Two — and person besides been drawn to meet successful nan FA Cup, which nan original squad famously won against nan likelihood 36 years agone aft beating mighty Liverpool successful nan final.

Any gathering betwixt AFC Wimbledon and MK Dons is seen arsenic a conflict for personality arsenic overmuch arsenic a shot match, pinch some sets of fans typically goading each different and laying declare to beryllium heirs of nan original club.

“Some of america garbage to moreover telephone it a derby because they virtually spot nan different nine arsenic an abomination,” Spencer, who is simply a personnel of nan ‘Across nan Pond Dons’ supporters’ group, told The Associated Press.

“They spot Milton Keynes arsenic thing that doesn’t beryllium and is conscionable antagonistic to everything shot is.”

For this reason, expect incidents astir nan game. Like location was 12 years agone erstwhile nan teams first met, besides successful nan FA Cup.

Jon Otsemobor scored a stoppage-time victor for MK Dons that time successful 2012 and he remembered being briefed up of nan crippled by nan club’s erstwhile owner, euphony shaper Pete Winkelman, astir nan value of nan fixture.

“When we sewage drawn against AFC Wimbledon, he (Winkelman) came down to nan training crushed and arranged a meeting. I thought this is simply a spot weird,” Otsemobor told nan AP successful a telephone interview. “But he said, ‘Lads, listen, I request to explicate to you really important this crippled is.' To beryllium fair, it was a spot of a history instruction connected MK.”

Midway done nan first half, a level — chartered by AFC Wimbledon supporters — flew complete MK Dons’ stadium tugging a banner that read: “We are Wimbledon.” There were reports of accommodation being damaged.

Otsemobor recalled coming retired for nan warmup and seeing nan stadium being packed not conscionable pinch fans of nan 2 teams but of different clubs who had travel to cheer connected AFC Wimbledon, fixed what it had been though.

"There were supporters location from Blackpool, Blackburn, each different teams,” Otsemobor said. “I said to 1 of nan unit members, ‘Why are group from different clubs here?’ They were location to protestation against MK for what they did.”

Since then, nan threat of problem astir nan fixture has led to measures including visiting MK Dons fans requiring a constabulary escort into nan ground. In 2017, AFC Wimbledon was charged pinch breaching regulations for not referring to MK Dons by sanction connected nan scoreboard aliases nan lucifer program. It led to English shot authorities arranging mediation betwixt nan teams successful a bid to amended their relationship.

Still, things stay spiky.

In a convention lucifer successful March this year, location was an on-field brawl astatine nan last whistle pursuing a 94th-minute victor by AFC Wimbledon. The teams were charged pinch failing to power their players and 1 AFC Wimbledon player, Harry Pell, was fined and banned aft admitting to deliberately kicking balls astatine MK Dons fans during nan warmup.

“The business sewage nan amended of me,” Pell later told a disciplinary panel, which recovered that 1 shot, deliberately fired wide of nan goal, struck an 11-year-old woman successful nan face.

Away from soccer, nan sanction Wimbledon is synonymous pinch nan grass-court tennis tourney known for its traditions and decorum.

The shot squad intelligibly retains its scrappier side, which chimes pinch that Crazy Gang squad of nan 1980s and early '90s that contained Vinnie Jones, a player-turned-actor who typically plays reliable guys successful Guy Ritchie films.

And for Otsemobor, nan “hatred will ever beryllium there” — peculiarly from nan AFC Wimbledon side.

“AFC Wimbledon will opportunity they are THE Wimbledon, but nan existent aged Wimbledon that we retrieve are MK Dons,” he said. “I can’t spot it happening ever again successful today’s crippled — you couldn’t conscionable return a shot nine location other and alteration nan name.”

Spencer recognized that, and said squad aliases franchise relocations is thing American sports fans “accept arsenic nan value of doing business.”

“Definitely nan U.K. isn’t desensitized to it yet and that’s thing that, for American audiences, is difficult to grasp,” he said. "Because we person astir apt seen 50 master teams move successful our time.”

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Steve Douglas is astatine https://twitter.com/sdouglas80

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer