World Cup champions France received a euphoric welcome on their return home from Russia a day after defeating Croatia to claim the title.
The players arrived to a raucous welcome at Charles De Gaulle airport northeast 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.
Hundreds of thousands of French fans lined Paris’ Champs Elysees as the team traveled in an open bus towards the Elysee palace where they were received by President Emmanuel Macron and broke out into an impromptu rendition of the Marseillaise.
"We're so proud of this team, they have truly become our players," said Priscilla Lagneaux, 28, who was waiting with friends under a wilting sun on the avenue. "We had to see them, and also the Cup."
French media spent the day lauding the accomplishments of “Les Bleus”, a dynamic, young team that sealed a thrilling 4-2 victory against Croatia in Moscow.
More than 300,000 people filled the Champs Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe and Place de la Concorde on Sunday night, partying into the early hours, singing the Marseillaise, setting off firecrackers and blaring horns until the sun rose.
Newspapers hailed a second World Cup for France, after their first victory on home soil in 1998.
“History Made” declared sports daily L’Equipe. Photos of superstars Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Paul Pogba, as well as shots of the team holding aloft and kissing the trophy in the pouring rain, dominated coverage.
The victory has helped foster a sense of national unity, with commentators playing up the fact the squad, the second-youngest in the competition, includes many with central and north African heritage, even if all but two were born in France.
The Paris metro system got into the celebratory mood, announcing the names of a number of stations were being briefly changed to honor the players and coach Deschamps.
Notre-Dame des Champs station was relabeled “Notre Didier Deschamps”, and Victor Hugo was switched to “Victor Hugo Lloris” after the captain and goalkeeper.
On Monday morning, the after-effects of Sunday night’s frenetic revelry were still visible. A number of smashed windows, an overturned car and graffiti scrawled here and there, including the phrase “Liberte, Egalite, Mbappe”, a reference to the national motto “Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite”.
On Twitter, Brazilian legend Pele paid tribute to the exploits of Mbappe, France’s 19-year-old superstar, saying that if the teenager kept equaling his goal-scoring records, Pele might have to strap his boots back on.
Mbappe replied to the tweet in English saying “The king will always remain the king”, quickly gaining 15,000 retweets.
For Croatia, a country of just four million people, the loss was bitter but their fans took solace in the best run in the nation's history, which featured a stunning win against Argentina and a semifinal victory against England.
"Thank you, heroes! - You gave us everything!" read the Sportske Novosti front page. "'Vatreni' (the "Fiery Ones" in Croatian), you are the biggest, you are our pride, your names will remain written in gold forever!" the newspaper said.
