As Lionel Messi and his Argentine teammates landed in the country with the coveted trophy, thousands of fans lined up in the middle of the night to try to get a glimpse of their favourite team as they won the greatest World Cup finals of all time ahead of what is scheduled to be a day of celebrations in Buenos Aires.
Members of the successful side, led by captain Lionel Messi, were all smiles as they descended from the plane in Ezeiza, right outside Argentina's capital, shortly before 3 am on Tuesday. Messi was the first player from the plane carrying the World Cup, flanked by coach Lionel Scaloni, who put his arm around the captain as they walked past a sign that read, “Thank you, champions.”
Joining to welcome the team were the rock band La Mosca singing 'Muchachos,' a song that was written by a fan to the tune of an old song by the band and became the unofficial anthem for the Argentine fans in Qatar.
The newly crowned champions of world football then boarded an open-top bus and then headed to the headquarters of the Argentine Football Association. The bus moved at a snail's pace as fans, many of whom were waving Argentine flags, as they swarmed the bus, eager for a glimpse of the players as law enforcement officers tried to keep them at bay.
Meanwhile, the Argentine government has declared a national holiday on December 20 (Tuesday) so that fans can celebrate the World Cup triumph with their heroes.
"I want to be in Argentina to see how crazy it is. I want them to wait for me, I can't wait to go there and enjoy it with them," Argentina captain Lionel Messi had said after winning the World Cup. And now, his wish has been granted.
"The world champion squad will leave on Tuesday at noon for the Obelisk to celebrate the world title with the fans," the Argentine Football Association (AFA) said on their official Twitter account.
