Basra derby
Southern Iraqi football clubs Al-Minaa and Naft Al-Junoob have been rivals since the 2004–05 season when Naft Al-Junoob club started playing in the Premier League. The clubs are respectively from Al-Maqal and Al-Tamimia, in the same city Basra, and for this reason a match between the two teams is sometimes called a "Basra derby". Another name is often used in the press is "South derby", which comes from the location of Basra province in southern Iraq. The animosity intensified since the first match, as Naft Al-Junoob was not expected to win Al-Minaa 1–0, and the exaggerated protest by Al-Minaa supporters to referee of match Khalil Yousuf prompted him to retire arbitration forever. and this animosity reached a peak during the 2010–11 season, when both teams played at the end of the season in the Premier League in a match, that if it end at a draw, Naft Al-Junoob will relegate to the Iraq Division One. Indeed, the match ended in a draw, and Al-Minaa fans celebrated the relegation of Naft Al-Junoob, and considered it a winning of league title. In the 2015–16 season, Naft Al-Junoob returned to avenge Al-Minaa, when both teams played at the end of the season in the Premier League. Al-Minaa needed two goals to go to the final, but Naft Al-Junoob played a defensive squad until the end of the match, although they were losing 1–0.
The results of some of these match led to the dismissal of some coaches. In the 2007–08 season, the Naft Al-Junoob management dismissed the coach Abdul Razzak Ahmed after the match ended against Al-Minaa 3–3, and in the 2012–13 season, the Al-Minaa administration dismissed the coach Aqeel Hato after the match ended for Naft Al-Junoob 4–3.
Since 2005, there have been 28 competitive Basra Derbies. Al-Minaa hold the precedence in these matches, with 10 victories to Naft AlJunoob's 7; there have been 11 draws. The most decisive result in an Al-Minaa–Naft Al-Junoob game is Al-Minaa's 4–1 victory at Al Mina'a Stadium, their home ground, on March 11, 2005. There have been two incidences of 3–1, Al-Minaa have been won in both matches; home in December 2005, and away in January 2006.
History
Origins
Al-Minaa began to play in the league since its inception in Iraq, in the 1975–74 season. It is one of the oldest clubs, and one of the most popular teams. Naft Al-Junoob is a new club. It played its first league match in the 2004–05 season. The first match between the two clubs was dated as 24 January 2005, as Naft Al-Junoob hosted Al-Minaa in Premier League. Naft Al-Junoob beat Al-Minaa 1–0 in the inaugural match. The second match at Al-Minaa Stadium came on 11 March of the same year – Al-Minaa won 4–0. Four more matches were played over the next two seasons, all Al-Minaa victories. Then, two matches between the two clubs took place during the 2007–08 season; all ended with a draw. Naft Al-Junoob took precedence over the following seasons, with plenty of draw results.
Thaghr Al Iraq Championship
Top Basra teams Al-Minaa and Naft Al-Junoob met at the conclusion of the First Thaghr Al Iraq Championship organized by Basra Football Association from December 14, 2009 till December 21. Referees Ahmad Shaker, Lafta Hameed, Hazem Mohammed and Rashid Hussein lead the match. Al-Minaa advanced to the final after collecting 7 points by winning against Naft Maysan 3–1, Ghaz Al-Junoob 4–1. To that, Naft Al-Junoob qualified after collecting the same number of points as it beat Al-Nassriya 3–0 and Al-Bahri 2–1. Al-Minaa won Thaghr Al Iraq Championship after winning over Naft Al-Junoob at the final with a score of 2–1. Al Minaa’ goals were scored by Nayef Falah at the 46th minute and Hassan Hadi Ahmad at the 79th minute. On the other hand, the sole goal of Naft Al-Junoob was scored by Muhannad Yousuf at the 10th minute of the game. The two teams shared the lead of the game that was led by referee Ahmad Shaker. The referee gave red cards to 3 players: Amjad Hameed, Alaa Nayrouz from Naft Al-Junoob team and Al-Minaa player Ihsan Hadi.Statistics
Up to and including 17 February 2020, there have been 28 competitive first–class meetings between the two teams since the first meeting in 2005.Head-to-head record by competition
| Match result | Iraqi Premier League | Iraq FA Cup | Thaghr Al Iraq Championship | Total |
| 9 | 0 | 1 | 10 | |
| 11 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Honours and achievements compared
| Team | Number of top-flight seasons | Best top-flight finish | Iraq FA Cup | AFC Champions League |
| Al-Minaa | 44 | 1st | Semi-finalists | Group Stage |
| Naft Al-Junoob | 15 | 5th | Semi-finalists | — |
All-time results
Al-Minaa at home
| Date | Venue | Score | Competition |
| 11 March 2005 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 4–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 2 December 2005 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 3–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 16 February 2007 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 2–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 10 December 2007 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 3–3 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 29 November 2008 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 21 December 2009 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 2–1 | Thaghr Al Iraq Championship |
| 9 May 2010 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 18 February 2011 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 24 July 2013 | Basra Stadium | 0–2 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 29 October 2013 | Al-Zubair Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 4 July 2015 | Basra Sports City | 1–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 26 December 2016 | Basra Sports City | 0–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 24 January 2018 | Basra Sports City | 0–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 22 November 2018 | Basra Sports City | 1–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 17 February 2020 | Basra Sports City | 1–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| Al-Minaa wins | Draws | Naft Al-Junoob wins |
| 7 | 5 | 3 |
Naft Al-Junoob at home
| Date | Venue | Score | Competition |
| 24 January 2005 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 1–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 23 January 2006 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 1–3 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 7 May 2007 | Al-Minaa Stadium | 0–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 11 February 2008 | Nasiriyah Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 20 March 2009 | Nasiriyah Stadium | 1–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 10 January 2010 | Naft Al-Junoob Stadium | 1–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 3 July 2011 | Naft Al-Junoob Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 1 February 2013 | Naft Al-Junoob Stadium | 4–3 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 4 April 2014 | Naft Al-Junoob Stadium | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 28 May 2015 | Basra Sports City | 1–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 6 July 2017 | Basra Sports City | 0–0 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 8 June 2018 | Al-Zubair Stadium | 1–1 | Iraqi Premier League |
| 15 May 2019 | Basra Sports City | 1–2 | Iraqi Premier League |
| Al-Minaa wins | Draws | Naft Al-Junoob wins |
| 3 | 6 | 4 |
Goalscorers
The competition saw 50 goals scored, 28 for Al-Minaa and 22 for Naft Al-Junoob; the individual player who scored the most goals was Al-Minaa player Ihsan Hadi and Naft Al-Junoob player Bassim Ali, each scored four goals. And there are five players who scored for both teams, they are Alaa Aasi, Nasser Tallaa, Ahmed Hassan, Sajjad Abdul Kadhim and Hussam Malek.Al-Minaa
| Name | Goals |
| Ihsan Hadi | 4 |
| Nasser Tallaa | 3 |
| Nawaf Falah | 2 |
| Alaa Aasi | 2 |
| Ali Hosni | 2 |
| Ammar Hussein | 1 |
| Ahmed Hassan | 1 |
| Osama Shayyal | 1 |
| Sajjad Abdul Kadhim | 1 |
| Hussam Ibrahim | 1 |
| Mukhlos Abdul Sattar | 1 |
| Hassan Humoud | 1 |
| Nayef Falah | 1 |
| Hassan Hadi Ahmed | 1 |
| Gleisson Freire | 1 |
| Hussam Malek | 1 |
| Edin Junuzović | 1 |
| Sultan Jassim | 1 |
| Mohammed Jabbar Shokan | 1 |
| Abbas Badie | 1 |
| Total | 28 |
Naft Al-Junoob
| Name | Goals |
| Bassim Ali | 4 |
| Alaa Aasi | 2 |
| Gaith Abdul Majid | 1 |
| Alaa Kamil | 1 |
| Yasser Saadi | 1 |
| Qasim Jalout | 1 |
| Amjed Hameed | 1 |
| Sajjad Abdul Kadhim | 1 |
| Ahmed Hassan | 1 |
| Nasser Tallaa | 1 |
| Hussam Malek | 1 |
| Sajjad Hassan | 1 |
| Mohamad Daas | 1 |
| Moayad Ajan | 1 |
| Anas Jassim | 1 |
| Muhanad Yousuf | 1 |
| Yahaya Adamu | 1 |
| Papa Koami Awounyo | 1 |
| Total | 22 |