A few words about history
Łódzki Klub Sportowy was established first – in 1908, as a police club. It is simultaneously the oldest sports club in the city and one of the oldest in all of Poland. It should be remembered that ŁKS is a multi-section club, although the first – and still the most recognizable – section is football. The current club colors are white-red-white. Currently ŁKS occupies 6th place in the Ekstraklasa all-time standings. The club's stadium is located near Atlas Arena and Łódź Kaliska railway station. Known fans of the club include Andrzej Sapkowski and rapper O.S.T.R. Interestingly, ŁKS was also supported by... blind Maks, a legendary Łódź gangster.
In 1922, Robotniczy Klub Sportowy was registered, commonly called Widzew. The current club continues the traditions of the "first" RTS (in 2015 RTS collapsed, but was later reactivated as a new, separate entity). It occupies 8th place in the Ekstraklasa all-time standings. The current club colors are red and white. The club's stadium is located on Piłsudskiego street. Widzew is one of two Polish teams that advanced to the group stage of the UEFA Champions League.
What the fans argue about
Why don't fans of both clubs – to put it mildly – have affection for each other? There are several reasons. The first is that fans of both teams claim that the opposing team was founded later than publicly stated. Second – both claim the right to be called the "truly Łódź" club. Third – the clubs grew out of different communities (ŁKS from the environment directly connected with the city and its authorities, RTS – from the environment of Łódź workers). There are actually many more reasons. The fact is that the dispute doesn't die down and is even fueled by fans of both teams. Fortunately, it doesn't always come to blows and offensive comments; recently Łódź residents have found pleasure in discovering increasingly interesting pseudo-facts about ŁKS and RTS fans on Łódź walls. Although seemingly provocative, they are quite free of aggressive approach to the subject of sports rivalry. Quite the opposite – they entertain and unite!
"RTS thinks that Żabka is a pet shop"
It started with the graffiti "Widzew are wimps". Not a particularly witty comment, written with spray paint on one of Łódź's buildings. The creator of this message, a man hiding under the pseudonym Janusz III Waza probably wasn't even aware of what he had just initiated. After hearing some conversations around the city ("I saw such a message...") he decided to continue the fun, provoking both sides. This led to two more messages – "Widzew drives a Tico" and "ŁKS doesn't read books". Many subsequent messages are also his work. The rest snowballed. Abstract jokes appealed to many people and became a weapon in the clubs' battle. And at the same time – they warmed up the image of Łódź hooligans. Here are a few texts that were written in various parts of Łódź:
- ŁKS fights with thoughts
- RTS thinks that the Paralympics is a locomotive race
- ŁKS drinks tea in water after pierogi
- Widzew goes on vacation to Zgierz
More texts can be found on the fanpage dedicated to the creative fan war – of course we're talking about Futbol Factory the Łódź way.
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