The Circus Maximus, ancient Rome’s vast stadium for chariot races, was the scene where hundreds of thousands of Italians gathered to greet an open-topped bus carrying their World Cup heroes. The mayor’s office estimated the crowd topped 600,000, with another hundred thousand or so accompanying the bus on its slow march from prime minister Romano Prodi’s new residence to the ancient landmark. Reuters reports that the revelers prepared for the national team’s arrival by parading around a hearse carrying a covered coffin wrapped by a French flag. As the bus arrived, coach Marcelo Lippi and his players each raised the trophy one by one. Apparently, a very intoxicated Alessandro Del Piero had stripped to the waist, led the singing and dancing. ‘Thank you for restoring to our national soccer, hit by an unprecedented storm, the dignity it deserves,’ Prodi had told the players. The World Cup victory will forever be a source of pride for Italy, a nation whose reputation has been tarnished throughout the years by several scandals. Among them: Silvio Berlusconi, the former prime minister and club owner of AC Milan, being indicted on several accounts of corruption, food group Parmalat’s involvement in a multibillion-euro fraud scandal, and most recently, the trial involving four top Serie A soccer clubs for alleged match-fixing. The fate of Juventus, AC Milan, Fiorentina and Lazio hangs in the balance even today, as a verdict in the multi-faceted corruption case is imminent. Eight Juventus players played in Sunday’s final, including five from Italy and three from France.