A few days before the World Cup final, the Madrid-based group Cerrado por Vacaciones wanted to provide the soundtrack to the fans’ excitement with a proposal full of nostalgia. The band has presented a new version inspired by the iconic theme of Champions: Óliver y Benji (Captain Tsubasa), one of the most popular sports animes of the nineties and a true symbol for several generations of football fans. The song retains the recognizable melody that marked the childhood of thousands of people but updates its lyrics to pay tribute to Luis de la Fuente’s Spanish national team and the footballers aiming to win the world title. In this way, the protagonists of the popular Japanese series give way to the names of some of the most outstanding players of the national team, turning a television classic into an anthem designed to cheer on Spain in the most important event of the championship. The most striking change is found in the chorus. Where for decades the names of Óliver and Benji sounded, now the song mentions several figures from the national team. “Rodri, Pedri, the magicians of the ball. Pedro Porro, you’re going to smoke it. De la Fuente, we want another World Cup,” sings the group in an adaptation that mixes current football references with the memory of one of the most popular TV themes. With this initiative, Cerrado por Vacaciones seeks to connect two generations of fans: those who grew up watching the adventures of Óliver Atom and Benji Price and those who today follow the successes of the Spanish national team. The result is a festive song full of nods that recovers the epic spirit of the series to bring it to the present, hoping that Spain will lift a World Cup again and the fans will find a new anthem to celebrate every victory.
The new World Cup anthem that pays tribute to Oliver and Benji and Cucurella
