Italy's World Cup winning football team has arrived home after victory in the final against France on Sunday night.

As the squad touched down at Pratica di Mare military airport in Rome, the Italian air force staged a flyover in their honour.

Fans eager to greet the victors crowded onto the staircase leading up to the plane.

As he exited the plane, Captain Fabio Cannavaro held the trophy aloft for all to see.

All the way into the centre of Rome fans trailed the coach carrying the team.

Traffic came to a standstill as the coach crept through the city streets.

Each of the players took turns showing the World Cup to the crowd - here Francesco Totti wields the prize.

People danced in the city's famed fountains and plazas.

And clambered onto any vantage point they could find to catch a glimpse of the team.

The final destination was the Circus Maximus, where an estimated 500,000 people had gathered to see the team.

The ancient arena, expanded by Julius Caesar so it could accommodate some 250,000 spectators, was once the city's hippodrome and the scene of lavish chariot races.