UNUSUAL
Juan Bernabé had already been controversial for giving a fascist salute at a team match
Published on January 14, 2025 at 1:08 pm
Juan Bernabé was the falconer of Lazio Credit: Reproduction
Lazio fired eagles coach Juan Bernabé after the professional published photos of the results of his penile implant on social media. The 56-year-old Spanish falconer released images showing his genitals after undergoing the medical procedure last Saturday (11), to improve his sex life.
The eagle is the official mascot of Lazio, a 125-year-old Italian club. Since the 2010/11 season, Olympia, a bald eagle, flew over the Olympic Stadium in Rome before matches, becoming one of the team’s greatest symbols. Bernabé was responsible for raising the animal on those occasions.
“Lazio, shocked upon seeing the images and video of Juan Bernabé and upon reading the statements that accompanied them, announces that it has interrupted, with immediate effect, all relations with him, given the seriousness of his behavior,” the team said, in a statement released last Monday (13).
Still in the note, the Italian club acknowledged that fans may be disappointed with Olympia’s absence from their home games.
“The club is aware of the shared pain that the loss of the eagle will cause fans at upcoming home games, but believes that it is not possible for everyone, especially with the historic symbol of the eagle, to be associated with one person who, with his initiative, made the continuation of the relationship unacceptable.”
Before Lazio announced his contract termination, Bernabé had already defended himself while appearing on an Italian radio program Radio24. “For me, nudity is something normal, because I grew up in a naturist and open-minded family. I don’t understand what the relationship is between this photo and pornography,” he said.
This is not the first controversy involving the falconer. In 2021, he drew attention after giving a fascist salute at the end of a match at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, in addition to shouting “Duce, Duce” (“leader”, used in reference to Benito Mussolini) to the stands occupied by the ultras from Lazio. He was suspended by the club at the time.
“I admire him (Mussolini) a lot. Being part of Lazio is an honor in every way, it makes me feel more of a man”, he stated, in 2021.
