AMIDST the heartbreak of Spain’s losing Sunday’s night’s Nations League Final penalty shoot-out against Portugal in Munich, another headline came via a quick riposte from a TV commentator.
Spain’s state broadcaster TVE carried the match on their La 1 channel.
After Arsenal’s Mikel Merino slotted in the first spot kick for Spain, a camera showed young Spanish supporters celebrating with several flags.
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It included a Francoist flag carrying an eagle- regarded very much as a symbol of a brutal period in Spanish history.
Commentator, Juan Carlos Rivero, quickly brushed it aside, saying: “The flag is worthless, happily.”
The RTVE president, Jose Pablo Lopez, quickly posted a response on the X platform over the comment, saying: “Great Juan Carlos Rivero on La 1.”
The Eagle of San Juan was Spain’s official state flag between 1945 and 1977.
Two years after the death of dictator General Franco in 1975, it ceased to be Spain’s official flag.
It is not banned but is regarded by some as a reflection of the Franco era, while for others it is a positive symbol of the nation’s history.
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