MADRID (AP) ― Spaniards blasted off fireworks and jumped for joy after their soccer team won the European Championship on Sunday night, giving the country a burst of national pride and temporary relief from the crushing economic woes that have engulfed the nation.

Tens of thousands gathered in central Madrid to watch their team beat Italy 4-0 and shout out “Gol!” more times than they thought possible. Even better for Spain, the country’s team became the first ever to win a Euro, then a World Cup and then another Euro.

Spain needed “this win to counteract the suffering caused by the crisis, which seems endless,” a smiling Antonio Ferrillo said in downtown Madrid.

The country has the highest unemployment rate in the 17-nation eurozone, is immersed in a deepening recession and recently asked for a bailout to prop up banks that could go broke after a decade-long property boom crashed.

After the triumph, cars drove by with passengers waving the country’s red and yellow flag and yelling “Espana!, Espana!” and “I am Spanish! I am Spanish!”

But the victory gave Spaniards undisputed proof their team is the best in the world, setting off wild celebrations that went past midnight in all corners of the country.

“This is the best thing in the world that could happen,” Vanesa Galilea, a 32-year-old civil servant, said as she danced with friends and thousands more in Madrid’s central Cibeles square. “This generation of soccer players is incredible.”

She added: “Tonight everyone can forget about the crisis, but it won’t disappear, unfortunately. Economically this won’t change anything but at least we will be happy for a while. Half of Spain won’t show up at work tomorrow, that’s for sure!”