North Belfast derby

The rivalry was heightened during The Troubles, and as the religious and political demographics within Belfast changed, Cliftonville began to develop a mainly nationalist following and Crusaders a unionist following.

Although a major force in the first 20 years of Irish football their strict amateur status (not dropped until the early 1970s) meant they were also-rans for long periods once professionalism took hold.

The first game between the two sides as senior teams took place in the Ulster Cup on 17 September 1949, finishing in a 2-2 draw at Solitude.

A fixture during the 2012-13 season came to national media attention after a game was cancelled due to a Loyalist flag protest.

Going into the fixture on 16 February 2013 Cliftonville led the Irish Premier League with a twelve-point lead, Crusaders in second had a game in hand and hoped a win over their rivals could see them falter.

A small group of 20 flag protesters turned up half an hour before kick off and engaged in skirmishes with police.

Despite praise for both clubs during the incident further controversy emerged for the rearranged fixture when Crusaders on advice of the police only offered 200 tickets for away supporters (around 800 would be normal).

In September 2018 the derby was chosen to be the first live NIFL Premiership match to be shown on BBC Two Northern Ireland, a part of a three-year deal between BBC Sport NI, the Irish Football Association and Northern Ireland Football League.

[3] In the early to mid 20th century Cliftonville's support was less polarised and they were seen as a cross community team in comparison to Crusaders, who had traditionally been regarded as a Unionist club.

With road blocks and cross community violence meaning that many away supporters no longer felt safe venturing to Solitude or Seaview.

It should also be noted that Cliftonville's amateur status meant that they were rarely competitive until the early 1970s, losing most of their games and finishing bottom of the table on several occasions.

Crusaders did not become a senior side until after World War II, and thus the only senior competitions they could enter from 1898 to 1949 were the Irish Cup (by invitation, having won the Irish Intermediate Cup or Intermediate League the season before) or the County Antrim Shield (again by invitation).

The Northern Ireland Football League Cup was established in 1986, with the first meeting between the sides coming in 1995, and the most recent in the 2014 final.

The two sides met each other for the first time in the NIFL Premiership European playoffs for a place in the 2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League.