Monday, July 10, 2006
It was a beautiful Sunday night in Rome, and in all of Italy. The pure joy of winning the World Cup here was overwhelming. After the last penalty shot, I hugged, and found myself hugged by, perfect strangers. Everyone hugged and jumped up and down and screamed, and I think that goes for most of the country's 58 million people. It was a great, beautiful, communal release of power and joy. I've never felt anything like it.