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Spain's World Cup-winning players return home for parade and celebrations
AP News • • general
Key Points:
- Spain's World Cup-winning soccer team returned home to a royal and prime ministerial welcome before embarking on a celebratory open-top bus parade through central Madrid, greeted by hundreds of thousands of fans.
- The team secured their second World Cup title by defeating Argentina 1-0 in the final held in East Rutherford, New Jersey, marking Spain as the first European nation to simultaneously hold both the men's and women's World Cup titles.
- Celebrations erupted across Madrid with large crowds singing, dancing, and setting off flares, though festivities were marred by the tragic death of a 13-year-old in Salamanca after a fountain collapse during victory celebrations.
- Spain's current economic growth and reduced unemployment contrast sharply with the 2010 period of crisis, and nationalist tensions have eased, contributing to a more unified national atmosphere during the celebrations.
- Fans began gathering early at Cibeles Square to welcome the team, enduring high temperatures as they prepared for the traditional victory ceremony.
