There is a stir at Serie A club Lazio. © AFP / TIZIANA FABI

Videos shared after penis surgery: Trouble at Lazio

Serie A club Lazio has hit the negative headlines due to racy videos from a famous club employee.

14 January 2025

From: dpa/det

The eagle is the heraldic animal of Lazio and the symbol of the club. This bird of prey is always present at home games. Long-time employee Juan Bernabé acts as a falconer and ensures that the eagle flies through the skies of the stadium. But now, of all people, Bernabé is making negative headlines.

The Serie A club's falconer shared photos and videos of his new penis prosthesis after an operation on his genital area. Fans complained to the Serie A club, which has now ended its collaboration with Bernabé after almost 15 years.

Lazio's fans were outraged. © AFP / FILIPPO MONTEFORTE

It is not the first time that Lazio has parted ways with the Spaniard. In 2021, a video of Bernabé raising his right arm in the fascist salute, the "saluto romano" (Roman salute), circulated. With other fans, he shouted "Duce, Duce", referring to the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. There is a large group of right-wing supporters in the Lazio fan base.

Eagle is the heraldic animal of Lazio

Lazio has seen the current photos and videos of the falconer, who has been flying the Olympia eagle through the Olympic Stadium in Rome since 2010, and has "broken off all relations with him with immediate effect," it said in a statement. The eagle is the heraldic animal of the Italian capital club.

"The club is aware of the pain that the loss of the eagle will cause to fans at upcoming home games." However, the step is unavoidable: "But we cannot associate our historical symbol with such a person," Lazio's statement continued.

Bernabé defends himself

A penile prosthesis is used for men with erectile dysfunction. An implanted pump enlarges the corpus cavernosum and, so to speak, causes an erection. Bernabé sees no problem in sharing his photos and videos. "My genitals are like my hands. They are part of my body," he said in an interview with the newspaper La Repubblica.

"I did it to give a sign and encouragement to the many people who have the same problem. It is important for them to know that they are not taking any risk with this operation," explained Bernabé.