Lions on football teams' crest A thousand-year-old tradition
The badges of football teams show monuments, flags, symbols and animals. And in the latter case, several clubs throughout their history have chosen an animal symbol with imposing and fierce features. This is the lion, the regal and majestic king of the savannah, which appears in the logos of many football clubs around the world, most notably in Italy and England.
The Lagoon Lion of Venezia and the Ciociaro Lion of Frosinone
One team that has been very Italian in the past, with Marco Rossi on the bench and Davide Lanzafame as bomber, has a golden rampant lion in the centre of its crest: that is Budapest Honved, winner of no less than 14 Hungarian championships. Gothenburg, Sweden, also has a lion with a crown and a sword in one paw in its white and gold coat of arms. The cat has been on the city's coat of arms since it was placed on the Swedish throne in 1364 by the then House of Folkung.
In Scotland it is Rangers Glasgow who display on their badge a red rampant lion with a tongue of fire clearly visible. Originally, the Scottish club's crest was a monogram of the letters RFC (Rangers Football Club), but in 1959 the club decided to adopt the animal, which is reminiscent of both the Scottish Football Association logo and the old royal crest and national flag known as the Lion Rampant.
When Orlando City left the borders of Europe and flew to the United States, the club associated its nickname (Lions) with a large golden lion's head on its badge. Originally, the American club's crest even featured three roaring lion heads, but now the number has been reduced to one.
