Inter Milan

If AC Milan are the serious, sharp-suited elder sibling, then Inter were always the rebellious younger brother—the one with different ideas, sharper lines, and a taste for the dramatic. Inter Milan was born in 1908 as a breakaway from what would become AC Milan. The split came because the Milan Cricket and Football Club wanted to restrict its player base to Italians only. A group of dissenters didn’t like that. They wanted to welcome foreign players and build a team that reflected a more global outlook. So they walked away and formed Football Club Internazionale—literally, a club for everyone.

Inter’s first home wasn’t a grand stadium but a rough pitch in the working-class canal-side area of Ripa Ticinese. There were no billionaire owners, no marble-floored training grounds. Just a group of men with a ball, a few boots, and a belief in something more open. That founding spirit—one of internationalism and imagination—never left them. In fact, it’s stitched directly into their badge. While many clubs went for crests and animals, Inter chose a swirl of letters—F, C, I, M—wrapped inside a circle. It’s stylish, it’s modern, and it hasn’t changed much since it was drawn by club founder Giorgio Muggiani in 1908. He was a painter by trade and the iconic design he created is no famous around the world – and has many imitators. Over time, that circular monogram became one of the most recognisable badges in football. Subtle changes came—a gold trim here, a refined font there—but the soul of the badge never changed.

Yet, for a time, Inter’s badge did feature something more dramatic: a serpent. Known as the Biscione, the serpent is one of Milan’s oldest symbols, taken from the coat of arms of the Visconti family, rulers of the city during the Middle Ages. The image—usually a snake devouring or consuming a human. Legend has it that a Visconti ancestor killed a Saracen knight and claimed the serpent from his banner.

The Biscione made its way into Inter’s badge in different eras, particularly during the Ambrosiana period under fascist rule in the 1920s and 30s, and again in several versions from the late 1970s into the 1980s. It’s never been a permanent feature, but it has always been lurking in the club’s visual language.

More recently, the serpent returned—not to the badge, but to the shirts. The 2010–11 away kit featured a bold, curling serpent graphic that wrapped around the torso, while the 2021–22 away strip showcased a more modern snakeskin pattern woven into the fabric. It was bold, stylish, and unmistakably Inter. The club had brought the Biscione back into full view—reminding fans of its heritage and deep connection to the city’s identity.

That serpent isn’t just Inter’s thing. It’s Milan’s. The Biscione appears on buildings, fountains, company logos—and most famously, on the badge of Alfa Romeo. The car manufacturer’s logo is split in two: on the left, a red cross, symbolising Saint George and associated with AC Milan; on the right, the Biscione, representing the city’s noble past and, by extension, Inter. One badge, two clubs, two identities. Alfa Romeo’s emblem is like a visual shorthand for the city’s football rivalry.

Despite the noble feel of the badge and the serpent, Inter’s support base has always been firmly rooted in the working city. As Milan industrialised, Inter drew fans from its growing working-class neighbourhoods—tram drivers, factory workers, apartment block kids kicking balls in alleyways. When the club moved into the San Siro, which it began sharing with AC Milan in 1947, it became the home of one of the world’s fiercest derbies: the Derby della Madonnina. Named after the golden statue of the Virgin Mary that stands atop Milan’s cathedral, it’s a clash of two visions of the same city.

Through all of this, Inter’s badge has been worn by some of football’s true greats. Giuseppe Meazza, whose name now graces the stadium. Sandro Mazzola, who dominated the 1960s. Javier Zanetti, a symbol of loyalty and grace. Ronaldo, Zlatan, Milito, Lautaro. Under Helenio Herrera in the 1960s, Inter became La Grande Inter, winning back-to-back European Cups and redefining what Italian football looked like on the continent. Then, in 2010, came the moment that lifted the badge into football immortality: the Treble. Serie A, Coppa Italia, and the Champions League all won in one year, under the masterful guidance of José Mourinho. It was the first and only time an Italian side achieved that feat.

So next time you see that badge—maybe stitched onto a scarf in the Curva Nord, or flickering on a screen in Jakarta, New York or Riyadh—remember what it stands for. Not just a football team, but a badge that speaks of rebellion, internationalism, pride, elegance and myth. It’s black, blue, and brilliant.