Javier Aragonés, the viral man with the Simonrack Spain scarf

Many of you will remember the young man who appeared on several television channels wearing the Simonrack Spain scarf during the European Championship. His name is Javier Aragonés, a man from Córdoba who some time ago bought a Simonrack shelving unit at the Paco Recortes hardware store in La Carlota (Córdoba) and received the Simonrack Spain scarf as a gift. The brand continued to offer this scarf to its customers for the Olympic Games.

Paco Recortes and Simonrack have also recently presented Javier with one of the red shelves that Simonrack has manufactured for the European Championship and the Paris Olympic Games.

Furthermore, Paco Recortes recently had the opportunity to interview Javier Aragonés, and here we present the exclusive conversation:

1. What did you think of Spain's victory in the European Championship?

Well, I imagine that, like the vast majority of Spaniards, I'm happy and surprised at the same time because nobody expected the performance this team has given, which game by game excited a fanbase that in recent years had become a little disillusioned, and we have been able to experience again the euphoria of a great victory.

2. Did you enjoy your time in Germany with your friends?

The truth is, with the group of friends I've been lucky enough to travel with since 2008 following the Spanish national team, it's impossible for every trip not to be an adventure; fun is guaranteed. Every Euro or World Cup is a must-attend event for our group of friends, something non-negotiable that we can't miss, and we always do the impossible to make sure no one gets left behind. We've even had to resort to a few tricks to ensure everyone makes it. We went to the match against Croatia in Berlin and stayed for three days. Watching the quarter-final match against Germany back in La Carlota, one of my friends said, "If we win, I'm going to the semi-finals." He didn't say anything more than that; you can imagine the rest. Two days later, we were on a plane heading back to Germany.

3. Did you do anything special after the final?

We're big fans of pre-game festivities, so from midday we were at a friend's house enjoying the final from early on. We spent the day at the pool and then the final itself. You can imagine how we all ended up when the final whistle blew. I'm still missing a flip-flop from that day. Afterwards, we went out into the street to celebrate with the rest of our friends. The worst part was that the next day was Monday. UEFA needs to fix that for the sake of the fans because what a day I had at work…

4. What did your friends and family say when they saw you appear on television with the scarf?

Well, to tell you the truth, I had no idea that I had appeared on TV several times. I was focused on the game and the celebration. When we left the stadium and I looked at my phone, I had more than 30 unread messages from friends and family telling me they had seen me. I was especially thrilled by the audio message from my little girl who was watching the game on TV and was surprised to see me.

5. What do you plan to store on the red shelf that's already yours?

I haven't thought about it because it was something that surprised me and a thoughtful gesture from Simonrack that I didn't expect and that made me very happy, but it will definitely have a prominent place in the house. I'm a big football fan, so there will be many things to put in it.

6. Have you decided where you're going to put it?

When it comes to decorating, I don't have much say at home. Well, I'm not going to be modest, neither in decorating nor in anything else, but I'm sure it will have a prominent place that will remind us of this success. I have a patio that I would like to decorate with details of my Betis and La Roja; it could look very good.

7. It seems the scarf has brought our team luck. Will you wear it to future matches and victories?

The scarf has a story behind it; it's been my lucky charm. People wanted to buy it from me in Munich before the semi-final match against France, but of course, it wasn't for sale. And look, a few hours later it was the center of attention. La Carlota is a small town where almost everyone knows each other. When I got back from Germany, you can imagine how many people told me they'd seen me on TV wearing the scarf. Actually, the scarf was the star; I was just holding it. I've grown very fond of it, so it'll travel with me as long as I can.