When Fabio Cannavaro and his team raised the World Cup trophy in triumph on Sunday night, the Italians' joy  was matched by a certain sense of melancholy, no doubt felt by many in Germany. Italy's victory, as thoroughly deserved as it may have been, also meant the closing whistle for the World Cup. The national team has played its last game  after sealing third place in Stuttgart on Saturday night. And it has taken its final bow at the Brandenburg Gate  in front of a half-million adoring fans. It's also possible that trainer Jürgen Klinsmann  has coached the German squad for the last time. After four weeks of celebrations that are without a doubt the greatest party Germany has ever thrown, workers in cities all across the country have begun dismantling fan fests, camps and any other evidence that the country has just hosted the world's most important sporting event.

But, after the euphoria of the last month has died down, and German society has had time to reflect on the World Cup experience, what will be the tournament's legacy? Has there really been a transformation in German attitudes, a greater sense of openness, a new inclusive patriotism? Or, will the hangover soon kick in, and old prejudices and resentments quickly return? The German press tries to assess what the World Cup really means for Germany and its people.

"Will the party give the country new impetus, will joy and friendliness remain or will, as so often happens after beautiful days, the daily grind and the grumbling return?" Die Welt asks on Monday. "Germany was free, cavalierly wrapped in the national colors as never before, easygoing and vivacious. You can't put that down to pure sporting action: the ball alone didn't cause that." There is one possible point of comparison. "Was there not a huge celebration after the fall of the Berlin Wall?" Images of the sea of black, red and gold flags which greeted German reunification have not been forgotten. "Why shouldn't patriotic feelings live on? They tie people together, giving accomplishment a purpose… Germany has won huge prestige. The world was watching the entire time," the paper proudly suggests.

Columnists at the leftist Die Tagezeitung look back on the World Cup and offer a personal account of what it meant to them. Stefan Reinecke is pleased that politicians failed to exploit the tournament for political advantage, as had widely been predicted would happen. In fact, during the tournament the grand coalition's poll ratings plummeted. "The transfer of sentiment from football to politics, for which politicians had hoped, did not materialize, quite the opposite… Politics and football behave as competitors for people's attention, and politics doesn't have a hope." Political disputes (e.g. over health care reforms ) just end up annoying people, says Reinecke. Chancellor Angela Merkel was the only politician to come off well. In 1986, former-Chancellor Helmut Kohl went down to the team dressing room to encourage "his" men: the current chancellor handled things much better, the writer believes. " Angela Merkel behaved like a fan . After the win against Argentina she bounced around quite unsportingly and embraced Franz Beckenbauer simply because he stood next to her. She came across, quite undeliberately, as likeable."

But what effect has the World Cup wrought on the German capital? How has Berlin been transformed? asks Rolf Lautenschläger in the same newspaper. "When, from today, the huge football party is over, the flags of all the nations are rolled up, the millions of visitors -- our guests, friends and opponents -- the heroes and stars have left, and Berlin is no longer bathed in black, red and gold, a notorious void looms, into which one is usually plunged after euphoric events. ... We have come back down to earth. But is sadness all that will remain?" Sure, some of the hot air concerning new-found patriotism and economic recovery will be deflated. But, the World Cup has changed Berlin, the paper argues, because it has caused "the renaissance of the public realm" and has resurrected "the metropolitan internationalism of Berlin." Before the World Cup, few believed that the city had the spirit for parties and passion requisite for hosting a World Cup. "But then came the summer, the games and the fervent desire for transformation -- 'anything goes!'" Moreover, the people reclaimed the streets, watching games in gardens, parks, squares, on open-air screens and the Fan Mile. A metropolitan, multicultural feel reigned in its wake. This will surely continue to prosper.

The Berliner Zeitung looks back on the tournament on Monday with fondness. It recalls all the pre-tournament wrangling which ultimately proved groundless: The German national team lost 4-1 to Italy in March, the World Cup logo and slogan were mocked, the mascot was lampooned. Hooligans, terrorism, right-wing extremists: all were going to ruin the tournament. Instead, euphoria and optimism ruled supreme -- the black, red and gold-embossed jubiliation of hundreds of thousands of fans. "Football lost the laddishness and nationalism which has accompanied it for decades, like a belch follows beer. It became the reason for a party, stylish, popular and glamorous -- all at the same time."

"It was not so much the quality of the games which will stay in the memory: it was the joy, savoured by millions of all nationalities, of watching football together," writes Frankfurter Allgemeine. "Football fans were the true champions and along the way they discovered new stadiums in addition to the 12 World Cup arenas: the fan miles with their big screens… People who spoke about a commercialized tournament of bosses and fat cats before it began, now appear very misguided," the paper says.

"When, on 6th July 2000 FIFA President Blatter rather reluctantly announced, "And the winner is…Deutschland' (Blatter had hoped for a South African candidacy), he could hardly have known how right he was. From June 9 till July 9 German has not only organized a perfect exhibition of world football, its people have also seized the freedom to get to know themselves better," the editorial concludes.

Tabloid Bild dispenses with the frequently pretentious opinions preferred by the broadsheet newspapers to keep things simple for its readers. "Germany and the Germans have changed more in 31 days of the World Cup than politics -- with all its laws and decrees -- could achieve in years. And the whole world suddenly has a positive image of us." The country has sent out all the right signals. "Germany is a happy country, Germany is a consistently peaceful country, Germany is modern, imaginative and creative." And, with tongue firmly planted in cheek, the commentator writes that Germany, as a good host, kindly allowed others to get to the final, and instead claimed third place "in the real final". Patriotism is no longer a dirty word. "It is great living in this country, and we want it to stay that way. The World Cup hopefully has taught us that it's up to all of us to make Germany better."