Sometimes football is about more than just football. As Spain’s still-breathless media pointed out on Monday, the national side’s victory against Argentina the previous night was an epochal event that had transcended talk of tactics, grumbles over hydration breaks and displays of distinctly ungentlemanly conduct.
“It is the triumph of Luis de la Fuente and of an extraordinary group of footballers who – in a sport of stars and social media divas – have prioritised team values, joint intelligence, and the conviction of hard work,” said an editorial in El País.
But, the paper added, it had also yielded a moment of much-needed “collective emotion” for Spain and given it so much to be proud of at a turbulent political time: “It’s easy to see in this team, in its diversity of origins and regions, in the character of its stars, in its style of play, and in its ability to connect with fans and citizens alike, a reflection of what this country is, and what it can be, in the 21st century.”
El Mundo couldn’t have agreed more. “Our country has lived a unique collective experience,” it said in a leader. “Thanks to a group of young people who are as dazzling as they are relatable, we have seen the finest values of a Spain that is modern, exciting and capable of looking to the future with huge confidence.”
ABC, which opted for the succinct and undeniably true headline of “España Invencible”, was also in celebratory mood. But it couldn’t help contrasting Spain’s behaviour with that of its graceless opponents, describing Argentina’s conduct as “thuggish”.
Rubén Cañizares wrote: “Unlike Argentina, De la Fuente’s team had the courtesy to give Argentina a guard of honour as the ‘worthy’ runner-up … and even Sergio Ramos, who was in charge of carrying the World Cup trophy to the stage where Infantino and Trump presented it, embraced Messi in a warm, consoling hug, as Messi began to dissolve in a sea of tears.”
In the sports daily Marca, José I Pérez set about the not particularly difficult task of explaining how Spain had come to lift the trophy for a second time. “Spain had more possession, created more chances, had more shots than Argentina, and looked more dangerous,” he said.
“The team was the better side in the final … Argentina, like all the other teams in the tournament except Belgium, couldn’t score against Spain, who have only conceded one goal in their eight World Cup matches. It’s a spectacular record. It’s unprecedented in the World Cup for a winning team.”
Writing in La Vanguardia, Jordi Basté said that Spain’s persistence and purity had somehow managed to cut through the whole ridiculous, vulgar circus of the 2026 World Cup.
“If a Martian had landed on Earth yesterday and turned on the television, he would scarcely have guessed that the World Cup final was about to begin,” Basté wrote. “He would have thought he was watching the opening of a casino or billionaires’ convention.”
Despite the distractions of Donald Trump, assorted celebrities and hydration breaks, he wrote, “the Spanish national team was the only one that understood what this was all about”, adding: “Because when the noise dies down, when the drones are withdrawn, when the VIP boxes empty, all that’s left is the game. And in that respect, the Spanish team was the best in the World Cup.”
