Euro champs Spain meet King, parade in Madrid
Written by I Dig SportsSpain celebrated their Euro 2024 victory on Monday with an open top bus parade through Madrid after a visit to the country's king and president.
Spain beat England 2-1 in the final in Berlin, with substitute Mikel Oyarzabal scoring a late winner after Cole Palmer had cancelled out Nico Williams' opening goal.
It was a record fourth time that Spain have won the European Championship, having previously lifting the trophy in 1964, 2008 and 2012.
The squad landed at Madrid's Barajas Airport just after 2 p.m. local time on Monday.
Hours later, they visited the Zarzuela Palace, home of Spain's King Felipe VI -- who had celebrated with the team on the pitch at Berlin's Olympiastadion on Sunday -- before moving on to the Moncloa Palace, the official residence of Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.
The players and coaching staff then took to an open top bus to parade through the centre of Madrid, passing along some of the city's most famous streets before arriving at Plaza Cibeles just after 9 p.m., where tens of thousands of fans waited to greet them.
The win over England concluded a perfect tournament for coach Luis de la Fuente's team, winning all seven games, including victories over hosts Germany, reigning champions Italy, and favourites France.
Group stage wins over Croatia, Italy and Albania were followed by a comfortable 4-1 round-of-16 victory over Georgia, and a tight 2-1 quarterfinal win over Germany after extra time.
Spain came back from a goal down to beat France 2-1 in the semifinal, before overcoming England by the same scoreline.
Midfielder Rodri was named player of the tournament, and winger Lamine Yamal best young player.