Spanish team returns home

Members of the Spanish national soccer team traveled on a bus that wound its way through a five-kilometer (thee-mile) route through Madrid, where they were cheered by tens of thousands of adoring fans.

Spanish fans gathered in Madrid's central Cibeles Plaza in particular, with many wearing national team jerseys and waving the country's flag. Others watched from apartment balconies or windows as the bus slowly made its way along the route, escorted by police on horseback and motorcycles.

The team arrived back home a few hours earlier, when a plane carrying coach Vicente del Bosque's triumphant team touched down following a flight from Kyiv.

Their Iberia plane bore the words "proud of our national team" and the captain and the side's goalie Iker Casillas clasped the Henri Delaunay trophy as they emerged from the plane.

The winners were welcomed by hundreds of fans that came out to greet them at Madrid's Barajas airport.

The Spanish team thrashed their Italian opponents 4-0 in the final in Kyiv on Sunday, winning their second consecutive European title and making history by becoming the first team to win three major trophies in a row, including the 2010 World Cup.

sej,pfd/slk (dpa, AP)