Like with many other football rivalries, the Milan – Inter rivalry has its roots in a class distinction. Milan is the term which represents the working class, while Inter was the club for the middle and upper class. Of course none of this is the case today, but the perceptions still exist.
In the 1960s, the Inter – Milan rivalry heavily dominated Italian football. Both sides were led by charismatic figures. For Inter there was Sandro Mazzola who was a legend of Italian football and for Milan there was Gianni Rivera who was a giant of Italian football. These two were largely responsible for the huge Milan – Inter rivalry. The rivalry between these two was so strong that they were unable to represent Italy at the same time. One would play the first half and the other the second.
For the middle of the 1960s, the decade belonged to Inter. They won the league twice and the European Cup back to back. Only Celtic in 1967 could deny them a third straight title. Milan dominated at the ends; winning the European Cup in 1963 and again in 1969.

In the 1970s, the Inter – Milan rivalry cooled down but warmed up considerably in the 1980s. Both sides liked to mirror each other and it happened again. Milan signed three Dutch stars in Marco van Basten, Frank Rijkaard and Ruud Gullit. Inter had its own star trio in the German Andreas Brehme, Jürgen Klinsmann and Lothar Matthäus. Fittingly enough when Germany played Holland in the 1990 World Cup it was at the San Siro in Milan. Germany and Inter had the last laugh, winning that match. Brehme and Kilnsmann scored the goals to rub it in even more.

Besides intense Serie A encounters, the two have also met in the Champions League. Both teams are proud of their record in Europe. Milan have won the European Cup seven times to the two of Inter. The Milan-Inter rivalry escalated even further when the two met in the 2005 Champions League quarter final. The Inter fans were unhappy with the refereeing and shortly after threw bottles and flares onto the pitch. One of them hit Milan’s goalkeeper, Dida. The match was abandoned and Milan declared the winner. As a result of this fiasco, UEFA slugged Inter with a massive fine.

The two had met earlier in the Champions League in the 2003 semi finals. Both teams play at the San Siro so Milan were designated as the away team for the second leg. This proved vital after the first leg was 0-0 and the second was 1-1. Milan won on away goals to send them through to the final. They would go on to defeat Juventus in the all-Italian final but an Inter-Juventus final would have been even bigger. Inter fans are still upset that this dream final didn’t take place.

The Inter – Milan rivalry is so strong that is even has the power to split up families. Giuseppe Baresi was a star for Inter. He brother Franco was an even bigger legend for Milan. He was so big that Milan retired his Number 6 jersey.

The only person who has really succeeded in bringing the two teams together is Giuseppe Meazza. He played for both clubs. When he passed away, he was afforded the highest possible honor when the San Siro was renamed after him.

It is the players who provide the edge to the Milan-Inter rivaly, especially those who move from one club to the other. Aldo Serena had four stints at Inter and two at Milan. Even though he had his longest single stretch at Inter, some hard-core Inter fans doubt his sincerity and at a gathering of past Inter legends booed him.

Clarence Seedorf had three so-so years at Inter and then became a completely rejuvenated player on his move to Milan. He has helped Milan to one league title and two Champions League titles. He is very much regarded a favorite by the Milan fans and they love the fact that they took him from Inter.

The same thing happened with Andrea Pirlo. Milan retrieved him from the Inter scrapheap and he became a champion for the Rossoneri.
Ronaldo is the only player who has scored for both sides in the Milan Derby. He had five years at Inter before moving to Real Madrid. Following this he moved to Milan where he had two pretty unsatisfactory seasons.

Other players to have played for both teams of the Inter-Milan rivalry are Roberto Baggio, Fulvio Collovati, Edgar Davids, Francesco Coco and Cristian Brocchi.

For the most part Milan have had the edge over their rivals. This is partly due to the efforts of Milan in Europe. They have won the title seven times and been in the final another four times. Inter hasn’t won the European Cup since it went back to back in the mid 60s and hasn’t been to the final since 1972. This global exposure for Milan plus its higher presence in the transfer market has given it the image that its bigger than its rival.

Inter has won the Scudetto for the last four years. This resurgence came after not winning a Serie A title since 1989. They need though to take the next step in Europe and would be all fully aware of this. Jose Mourinho has brought a hardness to Inter but they can’t be satisfied with just taking Milan on domestically. They need to take it Milan in Europe. Then expect the Milan-Inter rivalry to explode even more.