With Win, Spain Takes On the Meaning of Nation
“Yo soy Español, Español, Español!” As a whistle in Johannesburg ended the final match of the 2010 World Cup, 5,000 miles away, an entire country burst into song. From the shirtless kids taking a celebratory jump into Madrid’s Cibeles fountain to the couples draped in Spanish flags dancing their way down Barcelona’s famous Ramblas, all of Spain, it seemed, was chanting the same joyful lyrics. But perhaps no one sang with more fervor than Mahbubul Alam. Watching the game through the window of a café in Madrid’s Lavapiés neighborhood, his entire body shook as he belted out the words everyone was singing: “I am Spanish, Spanish, Spanish!” The fact that Alam is Bangladeshi hardly seemed to matter.

Every World Cup has its stories, but this year’s competition was especially ripe with overarching narratives. From the romantic (in a live, postgame interview, ecstatic goalie Iker Casillas planted a kiss on the shocked reporter who — sigh! — just happened to be his girlfriend) to the financial (the win, promised several newspapers, would bring a boost to the foundering economy), Spain’s 2010 World Cup was about so much more than goals and penalties. It was about identity — what it means to belong to the new Spain.

Source.

Spain’s Gerard Pique holds the World Cup trophy after the 2010 World Cup final match between Netherlands and Spain at Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg July 11, 2010.

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