Massive crowds greet World Cup champions as they arrive back in Buenos Aires to heroes' welcome

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Thousands of fans lined up in the middle of the night to try to get a glimpse of the Argentina soccer team that won one of the greatest World Cup finals of all time ahead what is scheduled to be a day of celebrations in Buenos Aires.

Members of the team, led by captain Lionel Messi, were all smiles as they descended from the plane in Ezeiza, right outside Argentina's capital, shortly before 3 am Tuesday (2 pm Tuesday, Beijing time) onto a red carpet that had been rolled out for the squad.

Messi was the first player from the plane carrying the World Cup, flanked by coach Lionel Scaloni, who put his arm around the captain as they walked past a sign that read, "Thank you, champions."

The players were welcomed by rock band La Mosca singing Muchachos, a song that was written by a fan to the tune of an old song by the band and became a popular unofficial anthem for Argentine fans at the World Cup in Qatar.

The newly crowned champions of the world boarded an open-top bus and several, including Messi, could be seen singing the words to Muchachos while they waited for everyone to get on heading to the headquarters of the Argentine Football Association (AFA).