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SoccerArgentina

Argentina's World Cup winners get triumphant welcome home

December 20, 2022

After their World Cup triumph in Qatar, Argentina's national team have returned home and were greeted by fans in Buenos Aires. The team paraded the trophy in an open-top bus as thousands assembled in the capital.

Argentinien | Empfang der Fußballnationalmannschaft in Buenos Aires
Image: Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images
Image: Mariano Gabriel Sanchez/AA/picture alliance

 At 2:30 a.m. local time (05:30 UTC), the plane carrying the Argentine champions touched down in Buenos Aires.

Image: Gustavo Garello/AP Photo/picture alliance

Team captain Lionel Messi and national coach Lionel Scaloni were the first to leave the plane — with the World Cup trophy in Messi's hand.

Image: Rodrigo Abd/AP/picture alliance

The team walked down a red carpet to an open, white double-decker bus painted with the words "Campeones Del Mundo" (World Champions) and three stars for the three World Cup titles won in 1978, 1986 and 2022.

Image: Mariana Nedelcu/REUTERS

Despite the late hour, thousands of fans had come to welcome their World Cup heroes.

Image: Matias Baglietto/REUTERS

At a distance of five kilometers (three miles) away, the destination was the grounds of the Argentine Football Association.

Image: Mariana Nedelcu/REUTERS

The highlight later in the day was to be the reception by the fans around the obelisk, the capital's 68-meter-high (223-foot) landmark.

Image: Agustin Marcarian/REUTERS

 As well as Messi, Diego Maradona is never far away in this city and country. Before Messi, Maradona was the last Argentina captain to lift the World Cup, in 1986. 

Image: Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo/picture alliance

 Later on, the bus with the world champions aboard was swamped by thousands of Argentina fans.

Image: Cristina Sille/REUTERS

The street party went on for hours. It is believed up to five million fans decended on the city.

Image: Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo/picture alliance

With fans swarming the open-top bus, the tour on the ground was abandoned. Instead, the players took to helicopters and cruised above the city. 

Image: Gustavo Garello/AP Photo/picture alliance

 Some fans got a little too excited, with one jumping off a bridge and into the bus. Elsewhere, pockets of violence broke out between fans and the security forces.

This article was translated from German.

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