Spain’s World Cup-winning squad received a hero’s welcome upon arriving at Madrid’s Barajas airport at 2:30 pm local time on Monday, with captain Rodri leading the team off the plane waving the trophy aloft. The return marks the beginning of a day of nationwide festivities, with authorities preparing for over one million people to gather in the capital for an evening celebration centred on the Plaza de Cibeles.
Second World Crown Secured
The jubilant scenes follow La Roja’s 1-0 victory over Argentina in Sunday night’s final, played in New Jersey. The triumph secures Spain’s second men’s World Cup title, adding to their 2010 success against the Netherlands in South Africa.
Rodri, wearing his winner’s medal from the previous evening, carried the trophy through the airport terminal where hundreds of flag-waving fans had gathered to greet the newly crowned champions. The team posed for photographs before beginning a schedule of official engagements.
Royal Reception and Victory Parade
The squad’s first stop is the Zarzuela palace, northwest of Madrid, where King Felipe and Queen Letizia will receive the players and staff at approximately 4:30 pm. The team will then proceed to the Moncloa palace around 6:00 pm for a meeting with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.
The victory parade will commence from Moncloa at 7:00 pm, with the team travelling by bus into the city centre. Musical celebrations are scheduled to begin at the Plaza de Cibeles from about 6:00 pm. Madrid’s mayor, José Luis Martínez Almeida, confirmed the capital was working to give the team “the homecoming they deserved” while praising the peaceful nature of Sunday night’s spontaneous street celebrations. “Even though there were thousands and thousands of people on the streets last night, there were practically no incidents in the city,” he told Radio Nacional de España.
National Tributes
The victory has drawn congratulatory messages from across Spain’s political spectrum. Sánchez wrote on social media: “WE ARE WORLD CHAMPIONS!!” Conservative opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo hailed the squad as “Well-deserved WORLD CHAMPIONS!” and praised their “values, hard work, humility, and faith.”
Correos, the Spanish postal service, has announced a special commemorative stamp to mark what it called “one of the greatest achievements in the history of Spanish sport.” The red stamp will bear the word CAMPEONES and feature two stars representing both World Cup victories.