(AP) — Europe’s soccer champions returned home at dawn Monday to the ecstatic cheers of Italians who spent the better part of the night honking horns, setting off fireworks and violating all sorts of coronavirus precautions to celebrate Italy’s 3-2 win on penalties over England.
Captain Giorgio Chiellini, his fist pumping in the air, and coach Roberto Mancini hoisted the trophy high over their heads as they descended from the Alitalia charter at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci airport. Amid cheers from airport workers, defender Leonardo Spinazzola hopped down the steps on one foot, his other one in a cast after he injured his Achilles tendon earlier on in the tournament.
“Grazie Azzurri,” read the banner on the tarmac — a sentiment felt across the country after Italy took home its first major trophy since the 2006 World Cup.
The national team was being feted officially by President Sergio Mattarella and Premier Mario Draghi later Monday, joined by Matteo Berrettini, who had given Italians another reason for pride Sunday by reaching the Wimbledon finals. Berrettini lost to Novak Djokovic, but he joined Mattarella at Wembley Stadium to watch the Azzurri finish 1-1 after extra time Sunday and then win on penalties.
For Italians, the Championship was a new beginning for their youthful national team and a country that’s been yearning to return to normalcy after being hit hard and long by the coronavirus pandemic.
A cacophony of honking cars, fireworks and singing fans filled the night in Rome as thousands of people took to the streets. As the sun rose Monday, the noise had died down but not the sentiment.
“It seems to me that this victory is so good for the national spirit because after all that suffering for COVID,” said Daniela Righino and Italian living in Uruguay who was back in Rome for the final. “Yesterday was an explosion of joy. I’m happy.”
Many Italians saw the European Championship as a relaunch for a country that spent much of the past 16 months in various stages of lockdown. Italy was the first country outside Asia to get hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and suffered immensely, particularly in the spring of 2020 when hospitals in northern Italy were overwhelmed with patients and the death toll soared. Italy has recorded more than 127,000 COVID deaths, the highest in the 27-nation European Union.
“It’s been a complicated year for everyone but especially for us who were one of the first countries hit. This is a signal of a new beginning,” said Michela Solfanelli, a 30-year-old event producer based in Milan.
Most virus restrictions have been lifted since the spring and those that remain were largely ignored by the mass of Italy fans who danced in the streets of the capital chanting “we are champions of Europe.”
