West Ham United Vs. Tottenham Hotspur: A Brief History of the London Rivalry | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

Hooliganism between these fierce sides has proven so intense over the years that a documentary about West Ham hooligans deigned reserve an entire section for the rivalry.

Violence between the Tottenham Yids (so known for Spurs’ large Jewish following) and West Ham Inter City Firm (IFC) reached its peak in the 1980’s when, amidst overly tight jeans and horribly quaffed hair, 300 police officers were brought in for crowd control during fixtures—twice the number usually reserved for this purpose.

At that time the IFC was so regimented that each age group had a name. The 17-year-old hooligans, for instance, were known as the Under Fives. They even had a strategy for violence—attacking the front or back of a mob to inflict harm on the leaders of the Yid “firm.”

When Tottenham and West Ham met, police used horses and German Shepards to divide groups of IFC members and hoard them into the stadium before the Yids arrived.   

Of course, West Ham has a largely working class fan base, and the peak of IFC hooliganism coincided with a particularly bleak period of the post-war years that saw mass layoffs and enormous percentages of impoverished Britons living on the dole.

Though hooliganism has largely subsided as of 2011, the rivalry remains bitter and may be the source of a few dust ups and pubs. But then, what’s football without a few cuts and bruises?