Casual racism is frequent in Italian soccer — the president of the Italian Football Federation once bemoaned “banana eaters” entering Italy’s leagues — and hateful chants among ultras, or extreme fans, are the norm. Still, the appearance of postcard-size stickers of Frank wearing the red-and-yellow jacket of Lazio’s rival, A.S. Roma, has struck a nerve.

Mr. Smulevich and many others noted that any association with Frank was always considered an honor, not an insult, and reflected more on the ignorance of those who would use her image to cast aspersions.

“Using her image as a sign of insult and threat is, besides being inhumane, alarming for our country, which, 80 years ago was infected by the cruelty of anti-Semitism,” said President Sergio Mattarella of Italy.

He was far from alone in his condemnation.

The country’s prime minister, Paolo Gentiloni, called the images “unbelievable, unacceptable and not to be minimized.” Antonio Tajani, the Italian president of the European Parliament, condemned the “hooligans” who used Frank’s image to give offense, reminding people that the Jewish community was part of “our European Union” and that anti-Semitism had to remain “a horrible experience of our past.”

Matteo Renzi, the country’s former prime minister and the leader of the Democratic Party, wrote on Facebook, “If I was the president of a soccer club, I’d go down to the field tomorrow with the Star of David instead of the sponsor.”