A day after winning yet another Champions League title, this time at Wembley, Real Madrid paraded their 15th European Cup, as they count it, through the Spanish capital. It was a grand party, an ode to Real Madrid fans that kicked off at 5:30 pm and lasted well into the night. No one was missing. They had a great time parading the ‘pretty little thing’, as the number fifteen is colloquially known. More ‘pretty little thing’ than ever, with the streets dressed in white and pride permeating every corner of the city.
The route of the bus that carried Carlo Ancelotti’s squad, a legend turned coach, an Italian with a Real Madrid heart, began at the Almudena Cathedral, where Cardinal José Cobo welcomed them: “The Virgin receives this cup with all the people of this city who are happy,” he said. Then the open-top vehicle headed to the Community of Madrid headquarters, where its president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, was waiting, looking happy and sprightly in front of the European champions.
The PP politician, who was at Wembley, summed up her feelings in this astute way: “Being a Real Madrid fan is great. In every game, there is a huge mass of people wanting them to win and another equal wanting them to lose. They leave no one indifferent.” And so it is because the streets of Madrid collapsed under thousands and thousands and thousands of happy Real Madrid fans. It was curious to see how one of the policemen who were escorting the white bus on horseback was, precisely, the father of Dani Carvajal. Everything was kept in the family. Cibeles smiled when she saw the players arrive, eager to share their success with her friend the goddess.
🏆 ¡SOMOS LOS #CHAMP15NS DE EUROPA! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/E2JJbJm7Vi
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) June 1, 2024
The entourage also stopped at the City Hall, where José Luis Martínez-Almeida, the mayor, also from the PP, was waiting. There, the councillor spoke, and so did Florentino Pérez, with his usual calm, relaxed and conclusive tone, who made his intentions for the future clear: “From now on, we are working to bring home the Sixteenth European Cup.” Real Madrid’s voracity knows no bounds and his words were met with applause from everyone present, eager for his prophecy to come true next season. The party ended at the Bernabéu, packed to the rafters, like the streets through which they paraded the Fifteenth. The white colour shone brighter than ever. Kroos took a mass bath, the Real Madrid gladiators were received as heroes and overflowing joy invaded every corner of an imposing stadium. The Sixteenth awaits…
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