A royal first has quietly unfolded in the stands at the FIFA World Cup Final match, which saw Spain defeat Argentina and take home the trophy.
The Spanish royal family made a special trip to the US to watch the match at New York New Jersey Stadium, where King Felipe, Queen Letizia and their daughters Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía joined about 80,000 other revellers.
Princess Leonor and Princess Sofia (second and third left) celebrated Spain’s win alongside their parents in a special family outing. David Ramos
It is reportedly the royal family’s first major overseas outing as a group of four; in the past, the royal couple have travelled with one of their daughters at a time.
This is also the first time Leonor and Sofia have attended the World Cup Final, as they were too young to attend the last time Spain made it to the finals at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
That didn’t stop the princesses from celebrating Spain’s win 16 years ago.
The princesses pictured with Spain’s 2010 FIFA World Cup trophy as young children. Carlos Alvarez
The young royals, then aged just four and three, were front and centre in matching jerseys when Felipe and Letizia hosted the team at the palace in Madrid after their historic 2010 win.
Now Leonor, 20, and Sofía, 19, are all grown up and got to watch their team win from some of the best seats in the house on Sunday (local time).
They even appeared for a brief interview with their parents before the match, where Leonor and Sofia gave a few rare comments for Televisión Española.
Spain’s future queen, Leonor, wore red trousers and a crisp white shirt.
Infanta Sofia and Princess Leonor made a rare international appearance with their parents to see Spain win. Televisión Española/@casareal.es
Her younger sister wore a red blouse over cream slacks to show their support as Spain faced off against Argentina.
They’ve clearly learned how to dress for the occasion from their stylish mother, Letizia, who looked resplendent in a short-sleeved crimson dress for the final.
Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia watched Spain bring home the FIFA World Cup trophy from the best seat in the house. AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Felipe kept it classic in a dark suit but made his Spanish pride clear with a vibrant red tie.
The royal couple met with US President Donald Trump while at New York New Jersey Stadium (better known as MetLife Stadium) and were pictured shaking hands with him and First Lady Melania Trump.
They sat a few seats away from the Trumps in the VIP box during the match.
Spain’s King and Queen sat apart from US President Donald Trump and his wife. Their daughters had seats elsewhere in the stadium. AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Leonor and Sofia also appeared to sit apart from their parents and were not photographed meeting or interacting with Trump, his wife, or their 20-year-old son Barron Trump, who also attended the match.
Leonor will one day have to engage with US presidents and their officials in her capacity as Spain’s queen.
The 20-year-old princess is currently in the final stage of military training with Spain’s Armed Forces and will soon start a university course in Madrid.
She plans to pursue a four-year degree in Political Science at the Carlos III University of Madrid, where she will study subjects related to political science, humanities, law, economics, sociology, history and international relations.