On Our Lady of Mount Carmel feast, former Spanish soccer star’s Marian devotion still inspires

As Spain prepares to take the field in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final on Sunday, the Marian devotion of now-retired Spanish soccer legend David Silva serves as a reminder of the role faith has played in the lives of some of the most celebrated athletes.

Silva, who helped Spain capture its first men’s FIFA World Cup title in 2010, has spoken of his familyʼs devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, patroness of his hometown of Arguineguín on Gran Canaria in Spainʼs Canary Islands.

Following Spainʼs historic victory in South Africa, Silva returned home to fulfill a promise to participate in the annual festivities honoring the Blessed Virgin . Speaking with reporters at the time, he said he wanted to join the celebration “as always,” continuing a family tradition of taking part in the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Silvaʼs grandmother recalled the anxiety of watching the 2010 World Cup final, saying the family entrusted the match to the Virgin Maryʼs intercession.

“We were very nervous,” she said. “I couldnʼt even watch the end. I just held on to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Who would have thought that when this 14-year-old boy I raised left my home he would achieve this? I am so…