By SUMAN NAISHADHAM
MADRID (AP) — Spain’s World Cupwinning soccer team returned home on Monday, where the 26-man squad is due to meet with Spain’s royals and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez before boarding an open-top bus for a raucous parade through central Madrid.
Thousands of fans will greet them as they travel down Madrid’s historic avenues from near Moncloa Palace, the prime minister’s official residence, to Cibeles Square.
A ceremony with the players will then be held at the square, where previous Spanish national teams and their supporters have traditionally gathered to celebrate.
Spain walked off with the trophy at Sunday’s final after defeating now-dethroned champion Argentina 1-0 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It was only the second time — after a 2010 victory in South Africa — that Spain won the title.
The Spanish team was congratulated Sunday by the leaders of the three countries that co-hosted the tournament — U.S. President Donald Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
After the final whistle, the Spanish capital erupted into celebrations, with thousands of supporters pouring into the streets from bars and restaurants, many draped in Spanish flags or wearing the team’s colors.
Crowds packed Madrid’s Puerta de Sol and other major squares — singing, dancing and setting off flares while car horns blared throughout the capital.
Many celebrated Sunday’s victory long into the wee hours of Monday morning.
“I’m very happy. I’ve slept three or four hours, but for the team, I’ll do whatever it takes,” said 19 year-old Victor Álvarez early Monday.
Spanish fans celebrate in central Madrid after Spain defeated Argentina in the World Cup final soccer match in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
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Spanish fans celebrate in central Madrid after Spain defeated Argentina in the World Cup final soccer match in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
The World Cup victory, combined with the Women’s World Cup won by Spain in 2023, makes the European nation the first to hold both the men’s and women’s titles simultaneously.
“Honestly, it was very exciting. We preferred not to go to any bar or anything, to experience it at home, focused and very happy, very joyful,” 59-year-old civil servant Gema Rodero said.
Celebrations were dampened, however, after local authorities reported that a 13-year old in Salamanca, northwest of Madrid, had died after a fountain he had climbed onto with friends to celebrate had collapsed.
For many young supporters, the Spanish team’s triumph is their first time witnessing the men’s team lift the trophy — and the national delirium that has followed.
Spain today is markedly different from the country in 2010, when the Iberian nation was beset by a debt crisis, 20% unemployment and nationalist regions fighting to win greater autonomy. Today, Spain’s economy is expanding, the unemployment rate has halved and the country is forecast to again be among the Eurozone’s fastest-growing major economies. Nationalist and separatist tensions have considerably cooled.
Ahead of the team’s return, supporters waited in Madrid’s Barajas airport ready to greet them in an arrivals hall, many donning the team’s jerseys and waving Spanish flags.
Groups of supporters also began securing their spots near Cibeles Square late Monday morning, bringing umbrellas to protect against the sun and temperatures that are expected to climb to 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit).
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