SPAIN - HOME SHIRT 2009
La Roja (The Red One) represent one of international football's greatest modern dynasties. Based in Madrid, Spain's national team is renowned for its elegant, possession-based style and its extraordinary era of dominance from 2008 to 2012.
This home shirt was worn throughout 2009, including at the FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa - the tournament viewed at the time as the dress rehearsal for the 2010 World Cup. The design featured Spain's classic red base with subtle navy and yellow trim, channelling the colours of the Spanish flag.
At the 2009 Confederations Cup, Spain arrived as reigning European champions on a record-equalling 35-match unbeaten run - a streak shared with the legendary Brazil teams of the 1990s. La Roja eased through Group A with three wins over New Zealand (5-0), Iraq (1-0) and hosts South Africa (2-0), but the semi-final at Bloemfontein produced one of the great upsets in international football: a 2-0 defeat to a USA side inspired by Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey strikes, ending the unbeaten run in stunning fashion. Spain recovered to beat South Africa 3-2 after extra time in the third-place play-off, before the Confederations Cup setback was quickly forgotten in the broader sweep of the year.
It was a year of records away from South Africa too. Under Vicente del Bosque, Spain won all 10 of their qualifying matches for the 2010 World Cup - a perfect campaign with 28 goals scored and only 5 conceded - and David Villa finished as the top scorer of the European zone. The squad that left South Africa in 2009 would return a year later to lift the World Cup for the first time, completing the Euro-and-World-Cup double that defines the entire La Roja golden era.
As of 2026, Spain will be hoping to emulate 2008 and 2010 where they won the Euros followed by the World Cup - and they are well placed to do so. They've been drawn in a favourable group - Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, and Cape Verde alongside themselves. Their young squad from 2024 has developed and are ready to strike on the World stage this time.
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