Athletic Bilbao players Unai Simón, Aymeric Laporte and Nico Williams brought the World Cup trophy onto the pitch at San Mamés on Thursday night as the stadium paid tribute to the trio following their tournament victory in North America.
The three players entered the field to a standing ovation from the majority of the near-capacity crowd as players from Athletic Bilbao and Sevilla formed a guard of honor prior to kick-off. Simón, Laporte and Williams presented the trophy that was won more than a month ago in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Spain national team manager Luis de la Fuente, a former Athletic Bilbao player, watched the ceremony with emotion from the presidential box. Speaking before the match, De la Fuente described the occasion as a very special day and said it was a luxury to see players from the Basque club winning the World Cup.
Athletic Bilbao, founded in 1898, is one of Spain's most successful football clubs and is famous for its policy of using only players with ties to the Basque Country. San Mamés, located in Bilbao in northern Spain, serves as the club's home ground and holds more than 53,000 spectators.
Supporter reaction and stadium chants
The tribute was not met with universal applause throughout the venue. Members of the Herri Harmaila, the singing section in the stadium, responded with whistles and regional political chants during the ceremony.
Supporters in the animation section were heard shouting chants questioning Spanish identity prior to the tribute, followed by the customary chant for the Basque Country after the ceremony concluded.
The Herri Harmaila is the designated active supporter group located in the lower south stand of San Mamés, known for its vocal support as well as strong Basque nationalist sentiments during domestic and international matches.
Nationwide trophy tour
The ceremony at San Mamés forms part of a wider initiative organised by the Royal Spanish Football Federation to allow clubs to honor their international players. The trophy presentation in Bilbao follows a similar tribute at the Metropolitano, where Atlético Madrid recognized Marc Pubill, Alejandro Grimaldo, Marcos Llorente and Álex Baena.
The federation has arranged for all six clubs with World Cup winners in their squads to showcase the trophy at their home grounds. Following the event in Bilbao, the World Cup trophy is scheduled to travel to the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, the Camp Nou in Barcelona, Anoeta in San Sebastián, and Balaídos in Vigo.
The Santiago Bernabéu is the home of Real Madrid, while the Camp Nou belongs to Barcelona, Real Sociedad play at Anoeta, and Celta Vigo host matches at Balaídos. These venues represent the home grounds of the remaining Spanish clubs whose players contributed to the national team's World Cup campaign.
Youth honors and tribute to club legend
Prior to the senior presentation, San Mamés celebrated youth international success by recognizing Elene Gurtubay and Ziara Vega. The two players won the Under-19 European Championship with Spain under head coach David Aznar in Bosnia.
Gurtubay and Vega walked to the center of the pitch to display their championship medals and received a warm ovation from the supporters in attendance.
The institutional event concluded with a minute of silence in memory of Carmelo Cedrún, the legendary Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper who passed away recently. Cedrún, who hailed from Durango, was a key figure in the club's history and preceded José Ángel Iribar in goal.
At the center circle, club icon José Ángel Iribar, known as Txopo, joined current goalkeepers Unai Simón and Álex Padilla to pay tribute to the historic goalkeeper.
Carmelo Cedrún played over 400 official matches for Athletic Bilbao during the 1950s and 1960s, winning a Spanish league title and three Copa del Rey trophies before passing the goalkeeper jersey to Iribar, who went on to become the club's all-time appearance record holder.
