If Barcelona and Catalonia represents the artistry of Spanish football, the Basque Country represents its character.

Five players in the 2026 World Cup squad were from the region and came through at either Athletic Bilbao or Real Sociedad – clubs where eight players were playing at the time Spain won Euro 2024.

Then there is Mikel Merino, who scored a quarter-final winner against Germany at Euro 2024, before going on to score six goals in six games in World Cup qualifying, and late winners against Portugal and Belgium over the summer.

Although not Basque, Merino is from Pamplona in the autonomous community of Navarre – a region that has a significant influence of both Spanish and Basque culture.

Just five kilometres away from Pamplona is Zizur Mayor – the town where former Chelsea captain and Spain international Cesar Azpilicueta grew up.

When asked to describe Basque culture, Azpilicueta told BBC Radio 5 Live: “The discipline, the culture of working hard, of not giving up or being resilient, not very flashy.

“Normally, people want to display this culture of fight, being tough – like English football – more duels, more physical, less technical.

“But also in terms of tactical approach, more compact, great knowledge of knowing where to go, and with the ball keep it simple and try to go forward as quick as possible.”

The five Basque players from the 2026 squad have formed an important part of Spain’s recent success and are an embodiment of what Cruyff thought of players from that region.

Cruyff once said: “The first thing I did as a coach, was to sign four players from the Basque region. They are not afraid of anything.”

For current Spain boss De la Fuente in 2026, Unai Simon played in goal, with former Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte a key cornerstone of a defence that conceded just one goal in eight matches all tournament.

Nico Williams assisted the winning goal for Ferran Torres in the final against Argentina, Martin Zubimendi made a positive impact from the bench in both the Euro 2024 and World Cup finals, while Mikel Oyarzabal has scored 18 goals in his past 20 Spain appearances.

This influence stretches beyond the pitch as Basque coaches are in charge at four of England’s biggest clubs – Mikel Arteta at Arsenal, Unai Emery at Aston Villa, Xabi Alonso at Chelsea and Andoni Iraola at Liverpool.