MK Dons and AFC Wimbledon meet within the First Spherical of the FA Cup on Sunday, reigniting a long-standing feud between the 2 golf equipment.
Primarily based in Milton Keynes, MK Dons and AFC Wimbledon are greater than 60 miles aside, whereas the latter have solely been formally in existence since Might 2002. The FA Cup conflict will probably be simply the seventeenth time they’re going to have performed in opposition to one another of their historical past, too, although there’ll inevitably be loads of rigidity each on the pitch and within the stands.
So why is there such a rivalry between MK Dons and AFC Wimbledon? FourFourTwo highlights the explanations beneath…
Why is MK Dons vs AFC Wimbledon a rivalry?
The rivalry between MK Dons and AFC Wimbledon comes right down to controversial occasions twenty years in the past, when Peter Winkelman, fronting the undertaking for a big growth in Milton Keynes, which included shifting a Soccer League membership there, relocated the unique Wimbledon FC to Milton Keynes.
In 2001, Wimbledon FC’s board of administrators determined to relocate the membership to Milton Keynes, however confronted loads of opposition from the membership’s followers, the Soccer League and the FA. An FA arbitration assembly later gave the membership permission to maneuver, nevertheless, after a three-person impartial fee voted 2-1 in favour of the relocation.
It nonetheless took a while for the transfer to occur, although, however when Wimbledon entered into administration in 2003, the transfer accelerated. By September 2003, Wimbledon have been now enjoying on the Nationwide Hockey Stadium in Milton Keynes below their unique title. It took one other yr earlier than Winkelman finally managed to rename the membership to Milton Keynes Dons FC, selecting a brand new all-white package and membership crest within the course of.
Whereas some Wimbledon FC followers adopted the membership with the transfer, most stayed in south-west London to help AFC Wimbledon. AFC rapidly rose from Non-League to the Soccer League, with the golf equipment first going through off in an FA Cup match in 2012. MK Dons received, with their first league assembly coming 4 years later in 2016.
In relocating Wimbledon and fully rebranding the membership, some AFC Wimbledon followers, nevertheless, do not even recognise MK Dons as a reliable aspect.
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The rivalry goes each methods, too – MK Dons technically received the FA Cup in 1988 (Wimbledon FC lifted the trophy after beating Liverpool at Wembley) however they returned the trophy and different Wimbledon FC memorabilia to the London Borough of Merton in 2007. This was a part of an settlement made in 2006 between the membership, the Soccer Supporters Federation, and the Wimbledon and Milton Keynes Dons Supporters Associations.
MK Dons additionally agreed that references to the membership ought to solely confer with occasions after August 7, 2004, when the membership first performed below that title.
Whereas the rivalry continues, Pete Winkelman has since left MK Dons, promoting the membership in August 2024 to a Kuwait-based consortium, with Fahad Al Ghamin changing him as chairman.