Paris: The World Cup-winning French team returned home to a heroes’ welcome Monday evening as hundreds of thousands packed the Champs Elysees for their victory parade ahead of a presidential reception.
France overcame a determined Croatia team to win 4-2 in Sunday’s final. Millions of fans all over France celebrated into the night, honking car horns and flying the tricolour flag while the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe were lit up in the national colours of blue, white and red.
The players arrived to a raucous welcome at Charles De Gaulle airport north-east of Paris, including a ‘water salute’ by the fire brigade which sprayed arcs of water over the Air France jet as it taxied to the gate.
Captain Hugo Lloris, flanked by coach Didier Deschamps, was the first to emerge from the aircraft, raising the famed golden trophy before heading down the stairs and onto a freshly laid red carpet.
Commentators have focused on the outpouring of patriotism and sense of national unity created by the multiethnic French team, many of whose stars including Mbappe and Paul Pogba hail from deprived and often overlooked suburbs of Paris.
Laurent Joffrin, editor of the leftwing ‘Liberation’ newspaper, said they (team) had lived up to the ideal of ‘the Republic that we love’ united and diverse, patriotic and open, national without being nationalist”.
After the parade France’s newest idols were welcomed at the Elysee Palace by Emmanuel Macron, whose office has already promised the ‘Legion of Honour’ for the victors’ ‘exceptional services’ to the country.
Coach Didier Deschamps, who was soaked in champagne by his overjoyed players at a chaotic press conference Sunday, said Monday that the win was ‘just as big and just as beautiful’ as his 1998 triumph when he was the captain of the side.
“There are two things that matter – one is that these 23 players are now together for life, whatever happens, and also that from now on they will not be the same again, because they are World Champions,” Deschamps asserted on arrival.
Around 1,000 youths from local soccer clubs across the country, including the gritty Bondy suburb which produced Mbappe, were also present during the reception of the team at the Elysee presidential palace.
Meanwhile, six Paris metro stations were temporarily renamed in honour of France’s World Cup winning squad.
Among the changes, station Victor Hugo became ‘Victor Hugo Lloris’, named after the team’s captain and goalkeeper while metro stop at Bercy turned to ‘Bercy Les Bleus’, a play on words to thank the team. Notre-Dame des Champs turned to ‘Notre Didier Deschamps’, while Champs-Elysees- Clemenceau was changed to ‘Deschamps Elysees-Clemenceau’ to honour Didier Deschamps, who was the coach of the team and also the captain of the side who won in 1998.