The Revierderby is a German football match contested between Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04. Both clubs are based in the Ruhr region, called the Revier in German and this where the name of the derby originates. Borussia Dortmund are based in Dortmund while Schalke are based in Gelsenkirchen.
It takes just 30 minutes to travel between the two cities.
The first meeting between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke took place in 1925 and it was Schalke who came out on top, winning 4-2. There were three matches played between 1925 and 1927, with Schalke winning all three games, including a comprehensive 7-2 victory in January 1927.
The teams did not play against each other again until 1936 in the Gauliga and this is when the rivalry really took off. Schalke were hugely successful during this period and won six German titles.
Of the 16 Revierderby fixtures in the Gauliga, Schalke won 14 times, tasting just a single defeat. It was not until November 1943 that Borussia Dortmund recorded their first win over Schalke, beating them 1-0 at home.
Things improved for Borussia Dortmund over time and ahead of the Revierderby on the 11th of March 2023, Schalke have 60 wins to their name in total, with Borussia Dortmund claiming 56 victories.
This shows how Borussia Dortmund have made strides since the early meetings between the teams. Of the 159 fixtures played, 43 have ended level. Schalke hold the record for the biggest margin of victory in the Revierderby having won 10-0 in October 1940.
Recent fixtures in the Bundesliga show how Borussia Dortmund have had the better of the Revierderby when playing at home. Borussia Dortmund have won 5 of the 8 most recent meetings with Schalke at Signal Iduna Park, with the away team picking up just a single victory.
Schalke have also been struggling to beat Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga when playing at the Veltins-Arena. Schalke have recorded just one win in the last 6 Revierderby matches at home in the Bundesliga. That means, Schalke have won only 2 of the last 14 Revierderby games in the Bundesliga.
Scoring goals has proved to be a problem for Schalke in recent matches against Borussia Dortmund. They have failed to find the back of the net in each of the last 5 Bundesliga derby games against Borussia Dortmund, who have scored 12 goals over the same period.
So, it is clear that despite having the better of the early exchanges in the Revierderby in the 1920s and 30s, Schalke have been struggling recently. Nonetheless, Schalke still lead the way in terms of goals scored in the Revierderby and they have found the back of the net 294 times compared to the 250 goals scored by Borussia Dortmund.
In terms of individual goal scorers, the all-time record scorer is Ernst Kuzorra, who scored 16 goals for Schalke in the Revierderby. Lothar Emmerich is the top scorer for Borussia Dortmund with 11 goals, 10 of which came in the Bundesliga.