Italian Australians celebrate Cup win in frenzy of delight

Fans in Sydney kiss a replica trophy. Picture / Reuters

CANBERRA - Tens of thousands of Italian Australians packed cities yesterday morning to party uproariously as their team beat France to win their fourth World Cup.

Flares, fireworks, drums, cheering and dancing erupted near big TV screens, in restaurants, bars and clubs, and from cars circling the streets with the Italian flag flying from their windows.

For Australia, with a big Italian population, the victory was the next best thing to the Socceroos making the final.

"Now that Australia's out of it, [the fans'] second choice would have been Italy and I'm sure they're very happy," Prime Minister John Howard told reporters as he strode off for his morning walk in Sydney.

"It's a reminder of course of how well the Socceroos did."

It was always going to be a big night - or early morning - even with the icy overnight temperatures that have gripped much of Australia.

About 240,000 Australians were born in Italy, with a second generation of more than 330,000.

In Sydney as many as 10,000 of them groaned, roared and finally broke into dance and song in Little Italy in Norton St, Leichhardt.

In Melbourne, 8000 more partied in Lygon St, with thousands of others joining the jubilation in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.

There were few arrests. Two were reported in Melbourne and seven in Sydney, where a car was rolled over by a group of out-of-control fans.

Restaurants and cafes that either stayed open or opened early reported a roaring trade.

The mood of the crowds rose and fell with the fortunes of the game, but erupted into ecstatic cheering and singing as Italy's victory was sealed.

Flares and fireworks shot into the skies above Sydney and Melbourne, horns, whistles and hooters began blaring, and leaping crowds thronged the streets.

Joyous fans in Melbourne were led by a clutch of Roman centurions, with replica World Cups waving from the throng and Italian flags waving above the heads or draped around shoulders. Cafes served thousands of cups of espresso and free coffee from a cart was handed to fans chanting "Italia, Italia".

About 1200 dejected French supporters slunk away from the big screen in Federation Square, Melbourne, where they had watched their team's loss.

In Sydney, the loss was rubbed in by Italian fans who carried a coffin painted in blue, red and white stripes into the roaring throng.