Romano Floriani Mussolini, the great-grandson of Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, has insisted he wants to be known for his footballing abilities, not his family name, after joining promoted Cremonese on loan from Lazio.
"My surname has never been a problem for me. From my point of view, the less said about it, the better," Mussolini said at his introductory press conference, as quoted by the Ansa news agency on Thursday.
The 22-year-old, who can play as a right-back or right midfielder, was loaned to Cremonese for one season with an option to buy permanently.
He is the son of Italian politician Alessandra Mussolini and previously played for Juve Stabia in Serie B, where he scored his first goal last December.
The goal sparked controversy when the stadium announcer called his first name seven times, prompting chants of "Mussolini" from supporters, allegedly in a fascist salute. However, Juve Stabia denied the accusations.
Mussolini called the controversy “pointless” and asked the public to judge him by his performance on the pitch.
“I want to show what I can do and prove my worth,” he said.
Mussolini's father was Mario Floriani, a policeman, who, along with his mother, agreed that their son would have two surnames, Floriani and Mussolini, from which he could choose which order to use when he grew up.
Mussolini's mother said that both civil and church authorities agreed to this exception, as it was only in 2022 that Italy's highest court ruled that children would be given both their father's and mother's surnames at birth. The previous practice of giving only the father's surname was declared "unconstitutional."
During his time at Juve Stabia, Mussolini chose to use "F. Mussolini" as the name on the back of his shirt.
The Roma and Lazio youth academy product also spent a loan spell at Pescara in the 2023-2024 Serie C season.
