Vespa riders take to road in Rome to mark 80th birthday

The Vespa, the wasp-waisted scooter that put postwar Italians on wheels and went on to ​carry Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn through ‌the streets of Rome, is returning to the capital this week to celebrate its 80th birthday.

From June 25 to 28, ​Rome is hosting "Vespa Roma 2026 – 80 Years ​of an Icon", a four-day gathering centred on ⁠the city's Foro Italico and the Stadio dei ​Marmi, which has been turned into a Vespa Village ​of exhibitions, races, parades and club events.

Launched in 1946 by Piaggio, the Vespa became a symbol of Italy's rebirth after ​World War Two: cheap enough for a battered ​country, stylish enough to seduce the world, and practical enough to ‌weave ⁠through the alleys of Naples, Milan and Rome.

It has since become one of Italy's most recognisable design exports, appearing in films such as "Roman Holiday" with Peck ​and Hepburn, ​advertisements and ⁠holiday brochures.

Vespa has been in continuous production for 80 years, undergoing around 160 ​restyling updates and selling nearly 20 million ​units ⁠worldwide, including just over two million in the past decade.

Today, the scooter is sold in approximately 100 countries, ⁠mainly ​across Europe and Southeast Asia, and ​is manufactured in three production plants in Italy, Vietnam, and India.

-Reuters