World Football Club Crests

Founded in 1900, SS Lazio has been criticised for its crest because the eagle in the emblem can be seen as a fascist symbol. It’s an unfair accusation because the club was founded in 1900 and the bird was incorporated into its emblem 12 years later – almost a decade before Benito Mussolini founded the National Fascist Party, in 1921. The eagle, which stands for power, victory and success, was an important symbol in the Roman Empire, and this is what had influenced the club’s choice.

Furthermore, the club demonstrated its rejection of fascism in 1927, when the fascist regime merged a number of the capital’s teams to create AS Roma. Lazio was the only club to oppose the suggestion.

The club is famed for their light blue strip, colours that nod to the Hellenic inheritance that shaped ancient Rome. The club’s most successful era’s came with the appointment of Sven-Göran Eriksson in 1997. Under the ownership of Sergio Cragnotti, Lazio invested heavily in their playing squad and paid out large sums of cash in pursuit of success. Juan Sebastián Verón, Christian Vieri and Hernán Crespo were brought in within a few years and, helped by the inflow of global talent, the titles began to arrive. Between 1997 and 2001, Sven-Göran Eriksson led the team to seven trophies, a notable highpoint being the year 2000, when they won the double: Lo Scudetto (the Serie A title) and the Italian cup.

CLUB: S.S. Lazio

NICKNAMES: I Biancocelesti (the White and Sky Blues), Le Aquile (the Eagles) and Gli Aquilotti (the Little Eagles)

FOUNDED: 1900

STADIUM: Stadio Olimpico, Rome (70,634 capacity)

HISTORIC PLAYERS: Silvio Piola, Giorgio Chinaglia, Alessandro Nesta, Pavel Nedved and Giuseppe Favalli

1912–1914. An early crest depicting the misunderstood eagle. Far from being a symbol of fascism, the crest is inspired by the Roman empire. The bird is also strongly associated with the Greek god Zeus, a fact that suited Lazio as the club’s founders wanted to honour the legacy of ancient Greece. This also explains the derivation of the club’s colours, white and blue.

1914–1921. After a few years, ‘Roma’ was incorporated into the crest to clarify the team’s origins.

1927–1940. Although Lazio refused to become a part of the club created by the fascist regime in 1927, the club was forced to change their emblem that same year. At the centre of the crest, the eagle was replaced with the fasces, wooden sticks bundled together with an axe – the fascist symbol. Two years earlier, the club had changed their name to Società Sportiva Lazio from Società Podistica Lazio.

1982–1987. From 1940 onwards a number of versions of the eagle appeared on the club crest. Perhaps the most popular emblem among supporters was the one introduced in 1982. Although this was during one of the club’s dark periods, it was popular enough to make a comeback on match shirts in 2015, and would feature once more on the home kit in the 2017/18 season.

1993–present. Today’s emblem is a modernised version of the original club crest. The eagle rests once more on the blue and white shield, and it was under its sharp-eyed gaze that Sven-Göran Eriksson guided the club to their second ever league title, in the year 2000.

Giuseppe Signori scored 107 goals in 152 games for Le Aquile (the Eagles). He was also the Serie A top goalscorer three times (1993, 1994 and 1996) while playing for the Rome club.