The Azzurri's Six Nations heroics have prompted Italy to question its soccer-centric outlook and divert some of the spotlight from the round ball to the oval one.
The Italian rugby team's faces are gradually becoming familiar with the soccer-mad public after their historic wins over Wales and Scotland.
Those victories were given considerable coverage by Italy's main TV news bulletins - space that is usually reserved for football - and on the front pages of many national dailies.
The sport's profile is also being raised by increasingly frequent invitations for Azzurri to appear on TV shows and star as product endorsers in newspapers ads.
Even the political world has started to notice.
Premier Romano Prodi called to congratulate the squad after the 37-17 victory in Edinburgh two weeks ago - Italy's first away win in the competition.
And Sports Minister Giovanna Melandri called in at the Azzurri training camp last week to wish the players luck ahead of Saturday's 23-20 triumph over Wales here.
Italy have now won two Six Nations games in a single campaign for the first time since joining the tournament in 2000.
The Wales victory took the Azzurri up to eighth in the International Rugby Board ranking Monday, their highest ever position.
What's more, Italy go into next Saturday's game against Ireland with a chance of winning the tournament outright, if England and France lose to Wales and Scotland respectively - albeit a highly remote one.
The Italian Rugby Federation said the Wales and Ireland games sold out well in advance and that Rome's 25,000-capacity Stadio Flaminio needs enlarging to meet growing demand.
Even away from home, the Azzurri have solid support. Around 6,000 Italians travelled to Edinburgh for the match there two weeks ago.
The attention rugby is getting, however, is not just a question of people jumping on the bandwagon of the national team's success.
The Italian public is also being won over by the values shown on and off the field.
Rugby players rarely argue with referees over decisions and crowd trouble at rugby matches is unheard of.
Indeed, rival players and fans usually meet up for a friendly drink after the game.
This situation is being contrasted with the troubled world of Italian football. Serie A is still coming to terms with the death of a policeman in rioting at a top-flight match last month and the Calciopoli referee-rigging scandal.
"I cannot contain the joy and admiration I felt in seeing Welsh and Italian fans celebrate together after the game," commented Melandri. "That is how it should be in every sport".
Interviewed by Italian TV, converts to rugby said rugby players' modesty and patriotism was a refreshing change from the self-regard sometimes shown by Serie A soccer stars.
For example, the Azzurri rugby team proudly belt out the national anthem before the game, naturalized Italians like fly-half Ramiro Pez included.
It took years of media and public pressure before Italy's soccer stars took the trouble to show a little pre-match patriotism in the same way.
"The victory over Wales was a reward for the courage and determination of an extraordinary team," said Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni.
"They are giving rugby the showcase it deserves and confirming that the sport has great potential to grow and spread its values".
