A ritual, quite peculiar, that Marc Cucurella, the left-back of Spain world champion, took part in. A ritual that has its roots in the past: the burial of a coin in the playing field just before kickoff. A superstitious gesture that, at least for the Spaniards, seems to have worked once again, reviving a tradition already associated with the 2010 world triumph.
Behind that curious scene is Joan Capdevila, former defender of the Red Fury and protagonist of the expedition that won the World Cup in South Africa. The former footballer, after overcoming difficulties related to the US entry visa – caused by a trip to Iran ten years ago and which even led him to seek the help of Donald Trump – managed to attend live the final at MetLife Stadium between Spain and Argentina.
From the stands of the New York stadium, Capdevila recorded a video then published on X, in which he documents the curious ritual entrusted to Cucurella. The former defender had in fact suggested to the new Real Madrid signing to repeat the gesture he himself had made before the 2010 world final.
In the video, Cucurella is seen greeting his teammates, carefully observing his surroundings and heading towards the sideline of the field. Once sure he was not being watched, he quickly bends down, takes out a coin hidden in his socks and buries it under the grass with a quick and discreet movement. An action practically identical to the one performed sixteen years earlier by Capdevila in South Africa, when Spain won its first world title by beating the Netherlands in extra time thanks to Andrés Iniesta’s historic goal.
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Once again, the ending was surprisingly similar. The match against Argentina indeed went beyond ninety minutes and ended with a 1-0 victory for La Roja, decided by a goal from Ferran Torres, which gave the Iberians their second World Cup in history. “In 2010 I buried a coin in the grass before the start of the match, I have told this story a million times. Yesterday I asked Cucurella to do the same… Marc, I love you from the bottom of my heart! You are the world champion!”, Capdevila wrote in his post on X.
AND NOW I TELL YOU A SECRET…
⭐️ In 2010 I buried a coin in the grass before the match started… I’ve told it millions of times. I asked @cucurella3 to do the same yesterday… Marc, I love you very much. YOU ARE WORLD CHAMPION! pic.twitter.com/pPsSsf34FU
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— Joan Capdevila (@capde11) July 20, 2026
