150,000 Newcastle fans line streets to celebrate end to trophy drought

Newcastle, United Kingdom: Newcastle was a sea of black and white on Saturday as 150,000 fans lined the city´s streets to celebrate the Magpies´ League Cup success with an open top bus parade.

A 2-1 victory over Liverpool on March 16 saw Newcastle win their first major trophy since 1969 and first domestic cup for 70 years.

Despite that lack of glory over the decades, the club have maintained one of the largest and most passionate fanbases in English football.

“This is really incredible, absolutely mind-blowing,” said manager Eddie Howe, whose face was blazoned upon a massive banner opposite the club´s St. James´ Park stadium. “You´ve got people hanging from lampposts, out of buildings, I hope everyone´s all right.”

“The people have been absolutely brilliant. I can´t thank everyone enough the way they´ve embraced me and my family and I´m glad to have given them some joy.”

The parade began at St. James´ Park before travelling through the city centre and ending at Town Moor, where the players and major figures from Newcastle´s past were welcomed on stage.

“I said I was going to party heavier than anyone and I think I did,” said the club´s record goalscorer and former England captain Alan Shearer. “I don´t know where I am, what time it is, what day it is! The last two weeks have just been probably the best of my life.”

Local hero Dan Burn and star striker Alexander Isak scored the goals at Wembley that will forever live in Newcastle folklore.

Burn followed up the final by making his England debut less than a week later aged 32 and said the scenes brought to life what ending the long wait for silverware meant on Tyneside.

“Something I´ll never forget,” Burn told the BBC. “The sheer number of people was amazing. It´s really hit home what it means to the city.

“Just being able to take in that moment. It´s only an hour, but it´s an hour I´ll never, ever forget.”

The festivities were rounded off by a drone show put on by club sponsors Sela, a Saudi entertainment and hospitality company.

Newcastle´s fortunes on the field have been revived since a takeover by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund in 2021.

The Magpies reached the Champions League last season for the first time in 20 years. And they could be back among Europe’s elite next season. Howe´s men sit sixth in the Premier League but would move up to fourth should they win their game in hand against Crystal Palace.