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Spain's World Cup champions are celebrating back home, parading through the streets of Madrid after a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Argentina. NPR's Miguel Macias reports.
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MIGUEL MACIAS, BYLINE: For fans lining the streets of Madrid today, this celebration was worth the wait. For Merce Moron, today's celebration also brings back a very different memory.
MERCE MORON: (Speaking Spanish).
MACIAS: 1986, the World Cup in Mexico, quarterfinals against Belgium, a missed penalty kick by Spain.
MORON: (Speaking Spanish).
MACIAS: Moron says she and her brother stood on their balcony and cried. She later told her father...
MORON: (Speaking Spanish).
MACIAS: "I will never see Spain win a World Cup 'cause Spain is never going to win a World Cup." Moron was speaking for many Spaniards who, for generations, went from heartbreak to heartbreak. The world's biggest stars came to play in Spain, Barcelona, Real Madrid. The football was spectacular, but the national team always seemed to fall short. But then things changed. Spain's golden generation won back-to-back Euros and the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. And then last night, Argentina's goalie, Emiliano Dibu Martinez, had a record 11 saves, much to the frustration of the Spanish fans who could not breathe easy until the game was finally over.
UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Chanting in Spanish).
MACIAS: Merce Moron watched the game with her family, as many Spaniards did. After the game, she was emotional.
MORON: (Speaking Spanish).
MACIAS: "I never imagined I could live to witness two World Cups, two finals, two wins. I have goose bumps. I've cried so much."
Ruben Jimenez did not mind getting up early this morning for his job at a bank.
RUBEN JIMENEZ: (Speaking Spanish).
MACIAS: "How wonderful it is to wake up a world champion," Jimenez says. He says what he admired the most about this Spanish team was not one individual player, but the team itself.
JIMENEZ: (Speaking Spanish).
MACIAS: The team that doesn't rely on any stars and doesn't wait for a superstar to save the day. And Spain's future looks just as promising. Young players like Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams and Pedri are expected to be entering their prime by the next World Cup in 2030. The hosts - Morocco, Portugal and Spain.
Miguel Macias, NPR News, Spain.
(SOUNDBITE OF SHAKIRA AND BURNA BOY SONG, "DAI DAI") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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