Jamie Vardy Wears ‘Becky’ On The Back Of His Cremonese Shirt vs Roma

Jamie Vardy wore his wife’s name on the back of his Cremonese shirt on Sunday as clubs in Serie A took part in the #UnRossoAllaViolenza awareness campaign.

The 38-year-old striker, who joined Cremonese on a free transfer in the summer, was handed a place in Davide Nicola's starting line-up for this weekend's clash against AS Roma at the Stadio Giovanni Zini.

Unfortunately for Vardy and his teammates, the newly-promoted side suffered a 3-1 defeat against Roma as Evan Ferguson came off the bench to score his first competitive goal for the Giallorossi.

But ultimately, an initiative called “A Red to Violence”, which is dedicated to a campaign against domestic abuse, was the most important topic across Sunday's round of fixtures.

Ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on November 25, players wore the names of important women in their lives instead of surnames to raise awareness.

As seen below, Vardy wore the name of his wife, Rebekah or 'Becky', and also wore a splash of red face paint on his cheek.

This is the ninth season that Serie A has supported the campaign, which aims to raise awareness surrounding physical and psychological abuse towards women in Italy.

A number of activities are planned to support the initiative, including players and match officials taking to the pitch with a red mark painted on their faces. The captains of all teams also wore a symbolic armband.

In a statement, Serie A president Ezio Simonelli said: “Serie A renews its commitment to supporting female victims of violence and once again stands by their side to combat all forms of violence and abuse towards women."

He added: “The red mark that will be painted on the players’ and referees’ faces is not just a symbol, but testifies the league’s desire to keep the focus on an unacceptable phenomenon in today’s society.”

Serie A also posted some revealing statistics in a press release. In total, seven million women in Italy, which is roughly one in three, have suffered some form of harassment or violence in their lives.

Last year, a total of 111 women were killed in Italy, with 96 of those being at the hands of family members or loved ones. "The most serious forms of violence are perpetrated by partners, ex-partners, relatives or friends," the league said.