During the 1980s, an intense rivalry was born between Minerul Bihor and Oțelul Bihor (as they were known before 1996), with very disputed matches at the level of Divizia C. The victory was sometimes claimed by "the miners", other times by "the metalsmiths", but finally in 1992, after the fall of communism in Romania, both teams encountered financial problems and were relegated to the fourth division. Minerul took the leadership in the 1990s and promoted back to Divizia C, equaling the best ranking in the history of the club, a 3rd place, in 1997 and having a last sparkle, under private ownership, during the 2003–04 season, when they finished 6th in their series of Divizia C, but then withdrew due to financial difficulties. Oțelul had a last appearance at the level of Divizia C during the 2000–01 edition, but ended on the 12th place and relegated, then evolving only in the County Championship.