In Italy, Revelers Get Their Party On

Exulting fans in Italy tore through the streets on foot and on their bicycles, mopeds and cars yesterday, shouting, honking their horns and setting off fireworks after the Azzurri made it to the World Cup final.

" Forza Azzurri!" they rejoiced as they hit the cobblestoned streets of central Rome.

Tens of thousands of people who had filled the Circus Maximus in Rome roared when Italy scored its first goal in the final minutes of extra time and began chanting, clapping and waving flags when Italy scored again to seal the 2-0 victory over Germany.

Earlier during the game, they had clapped and sung "Italia, Italia" as they followed the game in Dortmund, Germany, on a giant screen. In Milan, thousands filled the Piazza del Duomo, waving the red, green and white colors.

In the northern port city of Genoa, people lit fireworks and set off sirens, the Apcom news agency reported. The scene was similar in Palermo, Naples, Florence, Turin and other Italian cities.

"Viva l'Italia, Viva l'America e Forza Azzurri" ("Hurray for Italy, Hurray for America and Go Azzurri!"), U.S. Ambassador Ronald Spogli, who hosted a party at his residence in Rome to celebrate Independence Day, said before the start of the game.

Spogli told his guests at the end of his remarks that he had set up a giant screen for those who wanted to stay and watch the semifinal. Dozens of guests stayed.

In Germany, the Bild Zeitung newspaper yesterday bade a premature -- and ultimately wrong -- "Arrivederci Italia!" and earlier this week, Der Spiegel was forced to apologize after its Web site called Italians "parasites, mama's boys and slimy." But the damage was done.

Italian fans had their own rallying cry: avenge Bruno, the Italian bear that was shot by a hunter last week after wandering from the safety of an Italian refuge and into Bavaria, where officials feared he would eventually target humans after killing rabbits and sheep.

The shooting has enraged Italians, and the head of the World Wildlife Fund in Italy yesterday called on the Azzurri to score one for Bruno.

-- From News Services

That Voodoo That You Do

You can get anything you want at the official World Cup souvenir kiosks set up in train stations, on street corners and outside stadiums -- T-shirts, flags, scarves, soccer balls, magnets, key chains, bottle openers, the list goes on and on. Perhaps the best item, however, is the World Cup voodoo doll -- little stuffed ornaments that come with interchangeable shields of different nations. Pins included. Pick a country you dislike -- on this day, the German fans were eagerly reaching for the Italian emblem -- and start pokin'.

-- Steven Goff

Not a Job, an Adventure

The only soccer personality spotted at more matches during this tournament than perhaps Diego Maradona is Bora Milutinovic, above, the Serbia-born, Mexico-living, globetrotting coach who is not in charge of a team at the World Cup for the first time since 1982.

Where will he land next?

"My friend, job is not necessary. I come to World Cup and enjoy," said Milutinovic, who coached the U.S. team in the 1994 Cup and is here working for a Spanish-language radio network. "This is the life."

Not surprisingly, the omnipresent Milutinovic and Maradona were spotted sitting next to each other at a match earlier in the tournament.

-- Steven Goff