Dublin side Bohemians visit Brandywell Stadium on Friday night in the first home game since Dundalk supporters were attacked earlier this month.
Fans, residents and club officials marched from Lecky Road to Brandywell.
Club director Denis Bradley said it was a symbolic gesture to prevent further trouble and 500 people took part.
"This is a battle we will win, this is a battle we have to win, maybe not immediately but we are very resolved," he said.
Derry City's FAI Cup semi-final defeat by Dundalk FC was marred by trouble outside the ground.
A teenager suffered head injuries and a Dundalk supporters' bus was vandalised.
Police said they have been liaising closely with the local community and the club in preparation for Friday night's match.
Ch Insp Alan Hutton said: "There will be an appropriate policing operation to ensure the safety of all supporters attending, as well as minimising any impact on local communities.
"I would encourage all supporters to come and enjoy the game and respect the local community.
"I would also like to acknowledge the excellent work carried out by the local community and Derry City football club in preparation for tonight's match."
Derry City added that the trouble by a "group of youths" was not typical.
"There is a group of youngsters, we don't know where they are from or who they are, who appear to be using these occasions to misbehave," Mr Bradley said.
"Derry City are saying tonight: "Not in our name" and the local residents are joining us to say: "Not in our area" are you doing these things."

The chef from York, North Yorkshire, went missing on 18 March 2009 at the age of 35.
It was recently revealed that four men held as part of the police investigation would not face charges.
Speaking to BBC Look North, Joan Lawrence said: "I have no instinct whatsoever that she isn't alive".
Her comments come on a legal milestone which states a person may be legally declared dead after being missing for seven years.
The previously arrested men, who are all in their 50s and from the York area, were held last year as part of a review of the initial investigation into the case.
North Yorkshire Police said up to 20 detectives and police staff had worked full-time on the review for more than two years at a cost of nearly Â£800,000.
Officers believed the investigation had been compromised by the "reluctance of some, and refusal of others, to co-operate" with the force.
Mrs Lawrence said she was constantly surrounded by "reminders" of her daughter, whatever she was doing.
She said: "Sometimes I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall, but I get through every day.
"There's somebody out there who knows something, but I have no instinct whatsoever that she isn't alive, I've had no cut-off feeling at all.
"In my opinion she's being held somewhere against her will and I want people to imagine if it was their child, how would they feel?"
Claudia Lawrence disappearance timeline
About 100 police officers were dedicated to the investigation at its height, but the figure has since dropped.
Martin Dales, a friend and spokesman for Miss Lawrence's father Peter, said: "It seems that we're all back to square one.
"It's really quite depressing especially as someone is clearly withholding the information needed."
A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "The investigation team will continue to thoroughly assess any new leads and information.
"We remind those who we suspect are withholding key information about Claudia that we will not give up our quest to find the truth."
Derry City Football Club has held what it describes as "a public act of defiance" to show disapproval at attacks on visiting fans this season.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
Seven years on from the disappearance of Claudia Lawrence, her mother has said she thinks she is alive and "being held somewhere against her will".