Spain's 2010 World Cup squad: What happened to all 23 players?

Highlights

Spain's 2010 World Cup-winning squad featured some of the greatest footballers of their time, including Casillas, Pique, and Iniesta.
Several players from the squad have retired from professional football and transitioned into different roles, such as coaching, club ambassadorship, and team ownership.
Some players, like Casillas and Pique, have experienced significant career shifts and off-field challenges, including health issues and controversies related to their political beliefs.

Up until 2008, Spain were known as football’s perennial underachievers.

They’d produced some fabulously gifted players over the decades and boasted arguably the world’s two most formidable clubs in Real Madrid and Barcelona, but they’d always flop at major tournaments.

That all changed, however, in 2008 when they won the European Championships.

Two years later, La Roja won the World Cup for the first time in their history, beating Netherlands 1-0 deep into extra-time thanks to Andres Iniesta’s famous late winner.

July 11, 2010 is a day that Spaniards will never, ever forget.

Spain, who continued their dominance by winning Euro 2012, had a hugely talented group of players at that World Cup in South Africa.

But what happened to all 23 members of the squad? Let's investigate...

Iker Casillas

Spain’s captain and one of the greatest goalkeepers we’ve ever seen, Casillas left Real Madrid in 2015 as his form began to rapidly decline for both club and country.

He suffered a heart attack in 2019 while at Porto and this eventually forced him to retire at the age of 38.

Casillas, who was given a role on Porto’s coaching staff, submitted an application to become the Spanish Football Federation’s president in 2020 - only to withdraw it shortly afterwards.

He returned to Real Madrid at the end of 2020, joining the club's foundation as an assistant to the general director.

Raul Albiol

Now 37 years old, the defender was a Real Madrid player at the time but left the Bernabeu for Napoli in 2013.

Albiol joined Villarreal in 2019 and earned a total of 58 caps for his country, with his final international appearance coming in 2021.

Gerard Pique

Pique was just 23 when he won the World Cup. The former Barcelona centre-back enjoyed a magnificent career and will be remembered as one of the best defenders of his era.

However, he had a strange relationship with the Spanish fans and was even booed by them on occasions, partly because of his support for Catalonia’s independence referendum.

He retired from international football after the 2018 World Cup, aged 31, before calling time on his playing career four years later.

Pique is now the owner and president of the Kings League - an intriguing new football format.

Sergio Aguero and Iker Casillas face off in 1 vs 1 Kings League penalty

Carlos Marchena

Carlos Marchena ended his career in 2015 following a brief stint with Kerala Blasters FC in the Indian Super League.

He's now employed as Valencia's technical coach following a stint as Sevilla B's assistant.

Carles Puyol

An absolute warrior who scored Spain’s winning goal against Germany in the 2010 World Cup semi-finals, Puyol retired from football in 2014 after spending his entire career with Barcelona.

He now works as an ambassador for both UEFA and La Liga and has also served as a football agent, representing the likes of Bojan Krkic, Carles Alena and Marc Bartra.

Andres Iniesta

Hero of the 2010 World Cup thanks to that unforgettable goal in the final, Iniesta said an emotional farewell to Barcelona in 2018 after a glittering 16-year professional career with the Catalan giants.

The former Spain international recently left Vissel Kobe and speculation is rife that the 39-year-old may continue his career alongside former teammates Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets at Inter Miami.

David Villa

One of four players to score five goals at the 2010 World Cup - along with Thomas Muller, Wesley Sneijder and Diego Forlan - David Villa was instrumental for Spain during the most successful era in their history.

El Guaje - ‘The Kid’ - became the owner of Queensboro FC in the United States in 2019 after hanging up his boots. The new team are set to begin competing in 2023.

Xavi

One of the best midfielders of all time, like his former midfield teammate Iniesta, Xavi left his beloved Barcelona in 2015 before spending the final four years of his illustrious career with Al Sadd.

He became Al Sadd’s manager in 2019 and spent the next two years there, winning the Qatar Stars League and the Qatar Cup in the process.

Xavi then landed his dream job as Barcelona's head coach in 2021 and cemented his status as one of Europe's best young coaches by sealing the 2022-23 La Liga title.

Fernando Torres

Spain’s hero at Euro 2008 failed to make the same impact at the 2010 World Cup, but he still ended the tournament with a winners’ medal.

Torres completed a controversial £50 million move from Liverpool to Chelsea in 2011 but struggled to produce his best form at Stamford Bridge.

He retired in 2019 following a season with Sagan Tosu in Japan and currently works as the manager of Atletico Madrid's Under-19 side.

In case you weren't aware, Torres is an absolute unit these days. He's clearly spent a lot of time in the gym since hanging his boots up.

Fernando Torres body transformation: Atletico U19s coach looks a unit in Liverpool game

Cesc Fabregas

The man responsible for providing the all-important assist for Iniesta’s winning goal, Fabregas went on to play for Barcelona and Chelsea after leaving Arsenal in 2011.

He spent three years with AS Monaco before ending his career in 2023, aged 36, following one season with Como in Italy's second tier.

Joan Capdevila

The retired left-back ended his career in 2017 following a brief stint with Andorran side Santa Coloma.

He currently works within the Institutional Relations department at Espanyol, where he played in the late 1990s.

Victor Valdes

If it wasn’t for Casillas, Valdes would certainly have had more than 20 international appearances to his name.

The ex-Barcelona ‘keeper had a strange end to his career after leaving Camp Nou in 2014, playing just two games at Manchester United after falling out with Louis van Gaal in spectacular fashion.

He then played one season with Middlesbrough but failed to prevent the north-east club from sliding down to the Championship.

Valdes has tried his hand at coaching in recent years but appears to have vanished off the radar following a poor spell with minnows UA Horta.

Juan Mata

Mata spent one more year at Valencia before lighting up the Premier League with Chelsea.

The Spaniard was exceptional during his first couple of seasons at Stamford Bridge, but Jose Mourinho’s return to west London in 2013 led to a shock move to Manchester United.

Mata played a total of 285 games for the Red Devils, scoring 51 goals, before leaving Old Trafford for Galatasaray in 2022.

The 35-year-old is currently a free agent at the time of writing.

Xabi Alonso

One of the classiest midfielders we’ve ever seen, Xabi Alonso enjoyed five hugely successful years at Real Madrid before moving on to Bayern Munich in 2014.

He ended his career in 2017 with three Bundesliga winners’ medals and went on to take charge of Real Sociedad’s reserve side.

He is currently the head coach of Bayer Leverkusen.

Sergio Ramos

One of the highest goalscoring defenders in history - and one of the most red-carded players ever, too - Sergio Ramos has had an extraordinary career.

The Real Madrid legend, now 37, is Spain’s record appearance holder (180) and also netted 23 goals for his country.

Ramos left the Bernabeu for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 and won the Ligue 1 title in each of his two seasons in the French capital.

Sergio Busquets

One of the best - and arguably most underrated - midfielders of his era, Sergio Busquets was a massively important player for Barça and Spain during the most successful periods in both teams’ histories.

Now 35 and coming towards the end of his career, Busquets has decided to embark on a new challenge over in America with Inter Miami.

Alvaro Arbeloa

Arbeloa continued playing for Spain until 2013 and Real Madrid until 2016.

The full-back then moved to West Ham but, in truth, his best days were long behind him by this point. It was no surprise when he announced his retirement in 2017.

Arbeloa went on to serve as an ambassador for Real Madrid and now works as manager of the club's Juvenil A (Under-19s) side.

The 40-year-old hit the headlines in May following a touchline clash with his former teammate, Fernando Torres.

Fernando Torres and Alvaro Arbeloa clash during Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid U19s

Pedro

Pedro waved goodbye to Barcelona in 2015 after it became clear that he would no longer be a starter in the first team.

The lively forward went on to play 206 times for Chelsea, scoring 43 goals, before moving on to AS Roma on a free transfer in 2020.

Now 36, Pedro has spent the past two seasons with Lazio.

Fernando Llorente

Llorente announced his retirement back in February at the age of 37 and said he planned to keep himself fit by playing padel - the racket-based sport which is particularly popular in Spain.

After ending his long association with Athletic Bilbao in 2013, the Pamplona-born striker went on to play for Juventus, Sevilla, Swansea City, Tottenham, Napoli, Udinese and, finally, Eibar.