Huge crowds welcome World Champions, Argentina, Finalists Les Bleus after WC

BUENOS AIRES/PARIS, Dec20: Thousands of fans lined up in the middle of the night to try to get a glimpse of the Argentina soccer team that won one of the greatest World Cup finals of all time ahead what is scheduled to be a day of celebrations in Buenos Aires.
Members of the team, led by captain Lionel Messi, were all smiles as they descended from the plane in Ezeiza, right outside Argentina’s capital, shortly before 3 a.m. Tuesday onto a red carpet that had been rolled out for the squad.
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.”
The players were welcomed by 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 a popular unofficial anthem for Argentine fans at the World Cup in Qatar.
The newly crowned champions of the world boarded an open top bus and several, including Messi, could be seen singing the words to “Muchachos” while they waited for everyone to get on to travel 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, swarmed the bus on a highway, eager for a glimpse of the players as law enforcement officers tried to keep them at bay. Throughout the trip, Messi held on the World Cup as players waved to fans and often sang along with them.
It took the bus around one hour to travel approximately 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) from the airport to AFA headquarters, where the players were welcomed with fireworks.
They will sleep at AFA headquarters for a few hours before boarding the bus later Tuesday to the Obelisk, the iconic Buenos Aires landmark that was a sea of people Sunday afternoon after the team won the country’s third World Cup, and its first since 1986.
President Alberto Fernández declared a national holiday Tuesday so the country could celebrate the victory.
The day after the streets of Argentina turned into massive parties following the Sunday victory, many kept a close eye on the flight that brought the players home to celebrate. As the plane got closer to Argentine soil, almost 200,000 people were tracking its path online and news channels gave live coverage of the arrival. Several players posted photos of the plane ride on social media.
Messi held the World Cup on the plane. Nicolás Tagliafico, meanwhile, posted a photo of the World Cup buckled into an airplane seat as if it were just another passenger.
Thousands gather in Paris
Thousands of fans in central Paris cheered the arrival home of a France team that lost one of the greatest World Cup finals.
Kylian Mbappé and teammates landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport from Doha just after 8 p.m. local time Monday and descended from the plane in a somber mood. Smiling airport staff members holding signs that said “Thank you” and “Paris loves you” were passed without acknowledgement by the team.
Looking tired and still visibly disappointed by their loss to Argentina in a penalty shootout in Qatar, the players boarded buses that took them to greet the hordes of excited fans waiting for them at Place de la Concorde. There, the team’s mood brightened.
In contrast with 2018 when France won the World Cup in Russia, the team did not receive a parade on the Champs-Elysees.
But to supporters, the location of the reception hardly mattered as they treated Les Bleus to a warm welcome home in the winter evening cold. They lit flares, waved flags and sang “La Marseillaise” as the players and coach Didier Deschamps emerged on the balcony of the Hotel de Crillon.
In his first message published on Instagram and Twitter following Sunday’s defeat, Mbappé posted a photo of himself, head down, behind the World Cup trophy with the message: “We will be back.”
More than 24 million people eight out of 10 viewers watched the final on French TF1 television, a record high.
France played its part in one of the most memorable finishes in World Cup history, even though the defending champion failed to retain the title.
Mbappé’s hat trick helped France draw with Argentina 3-3 after extra time but they couldn’t rally again in the shootout. (AP)