West Lancashire derby

West Lancashire derby
Other names	M55 derby
Location	Lancashire, England
Teams	Blackpool; Preston North End;
First meeting	Blackpool 1–4 Preston North End; 1901–02 Football League; (23 November 1901);
Latest meeting	Preston North End 3–1 Blackpool; 2022–23 EFL Championship; (1 April 2023);
Stadiums	Bloomfield Road (Blackpool); Deepdale (Preston)
Statistics
Meetings total	97
Most wins	Preston North End (47)
All-time series	Blackpool (32); Drawn (19); Preston North End (47)
Largest victory	Preston North End 0–7 Blackpool; 1947–48 Football League; (1 May 1948);

The West Lancashire derby (sometimes also known as the M55 derby) is a local rivalry in English football between Lancashire clubs Blackpool and Preston North End.^[1] The derby has taken place across all four tiers of English football, but not the top flight since the formation of the Premier League. Blackpool were promoted to the Premier League in 2010; Preston North End have yet to reach it. They did not meet in the League between the 2009–10 and 2020–21 seasons, but did so again in the 2021–22 EFL Championship campaign following Blackpool's promotion from the third tier.

The first West Lancashire derby took place on 23 November 1901 at Blackpool's Bloomfield Road. In front of a crowd of 6,000, Preston won 4–1. There have been 97 meetings between the two clubs in all competitions, with North End winning 47 to Blackpool's 32. The remaining 19 matches have been draws.

^ "Rivalry uncovered! The results of the largest ever survey into club rivalries" (PDF). The Football Fans Census. December 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2007.

[FFC001-1] "Rivalry uncovered! The results of the largest ever survey into club rivalries" (PDF). The Football Fans Census. December 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2007.

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