Superstitious Lazio finally bring back iconic eagle a year after sacking falconer who showed off his penis enlargement

LAZIO have announced the return of their iconic eagle mascot, months after sacking a falconer who shared explicit images of a penis enlargement on social media.

The Italian giants dismissed handler Juan Bernabe in January after he shared naked pics online displaying the prosthetic device.

The club eagle, a female named Olimpia, had been a mainstay flying over the Stadio Olimpico before matches since the 2010/11 season, making her debut against AC Milan in September 2010.

But Bernabe’s scandal, which left the club “shocked”, saw the end of the tradition, with the last match Olimpia was seen at being the Rome derby against city rivals Roma.

Or rather, that was until Monday when the Serie A giants announced the mascot would make a triumphant return.

The club shared a picture of an eagle – the animal which is also perched on top of the club’s badge – to their social media.

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They captioned the post by saying: “Introducing our new Eagle.”

However, fans will have to wait until its training is completed.

And according to Marca, that means fans will likely have to wait until at least 2026 to see the bespoke pre-match tradition return.

Lazio have not had much joy on the football pitch since the eagle flyover stopped.

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Indeed, the club have earned just eight wins in home matches since Olimpia’s absence, also racking up five draws and four defeats.

Some superstitious fans cited the absence of their flying mascot as the reason for the team’s downturn in form.

The new falconer and eagle are as yet unknown to fans.

Following Bernabe’s unceremonious axing by Lazio, a bitter public row ensued.

He remained living in the sports city of Formello, which houses players and staff by the club’s training ground, for a full six months.

The Spaniard, who has also worked with Benfica and Ludogorets, claimed he was recovering from his surgery before he was evicted by police on June 28 following an order from the Court of Tivoli.

Public appearances by him in public had further disparaged his reputation after admitting admiration for fascist Spanish and Italian dictators Francisco Franco and Benito Mussolini.