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10 Famous People From Madrid

Madrid is the capital of Spain and lies on the River Manzanares in the central part of the Iberian Peninsula. It is a hub of social life constantly buzzing with activity, a happening caf茅 culture and bustling nightlife.

The city of Madrid is home to approximately 3.4 million people, who in one way or another have contributed to the cities culture and beauty. Among them, below is a list of the 10 famous people from Madrid;

1. Felipe VI of Spain

Felipe VI of Spain – Flickr

Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borb贸n y Grecia was born on 30 January 1968 in Madrid, Spanish State. He is the King of Spain and ascended the throne on 19 June 2014 upon the abdication of his father, Juan Carlos I.

In accordance with the Spanish Constitution, as monarch, Felipe VI of Spain is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armed Forces with military rank of Captain General, and also plays the role of the supreme representation of Spain in international relations.

In his reign, Felipe has pushed for transparency and progressive policies. He was the first to meet with LGBT rights groups, and even appeared on the cover of a gay magazine. He also cut his salary by 20 percent, and instituted a law that keeps royal family members from taking gifts.

2. Enrique Iglesias

Enrique Iglesias – Wikimedia Commons

Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler was born on 8 May 1975 in Madrid, Spain. He is a Spanish singer, songwriter and actor. He began his recording career in the mid-nineties on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa by the turn of the millennium, he made a successful crossover into the mainstream English-language market.

Iglesias holds the record for the most number-one songs on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart with 27 songs, the Latin Airplay chart with 32 songs, and the Latin Pop Airplay chart with 24 songs. He also has 14 number-ones on Billboard’s Dance charts, more than any other male artist. Thus, earning the honorific title King of Latin Pop. In October 2020, Iglesias was awarded the “Top Latin Artist of All Time” at the 2020 Billboard Latin Music Awards.

3. Raul Gonzalez

Ra煤l Gonz谩lez in Real Madrid, 2009 – Wikimedia Commons

Ra煤l Gonz谩lez Blanco was born on 27 June 1977 in Madrid, Spain. He is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a forward. Raul is considered to be one of the most important players in the history of Real Madrid and regarded as one of the greatest Spanish players of all-time and also one of the best forwards ever.

He has won two Pichichi trophies (1999 and 2001), the top goalscorer award of the UEFA Champions League (2000 and 2001), five Don Bal贸n Awards (1997, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002) and one Best Player Award at the Intercontinental Cup in 1998.

4. Placido Domingo

Pl谩cido Domingo – Wikipedia

Jos茅 Pl谩cido Domingo Embil was born on 21 January 1941 in the Retiro district of Madrid, Spain. He is a Spanish opera singer, conductor and arts administrator. Although primarily a lirico-spinto tenor for most of his career, he quickly moved into more dramatic roles, becoming the most acclaimed Otello of his generation.

Domingo won his first Grammy Award in 1971 and has gone on to win eight more, as well as five Latin Grammy Awards, including an award for Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year. In 2002, he was made an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. In 2012, Domingo was voted into Gramophone’s first Hall of Fame.

5. Julio Iglesias

Julio Iglesias – Flickr

Julio Jos茅 Iglesias de la Cueva was born on 23 September 1943 in Madrid. He is a Spanish singer, songwriter and former professional footballer. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful continental European singer in the world and one of the top record sellers in music history.

During his career, Iglesias has won many awards in the music industry, including the Grammy, Latin Grammy, World Music Award, Billboard Music Award, American Music Award and Lo Nuestro Award. He has been awarded the Gold Medal for Merit in the Fine Arts of Spain and the Legion of Honour of France. UNICEF named him Special Ambassador for the Performing Arts in 1989. He has had a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame since 1985. In April 2013, Iglesias was inducted into the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame.

6. Belinda Peregrin

Belinda – Wikipedia

Belinda Peregr铆n Sch眉ll was born on August 15, 1989 in Madrid. She is a Latin Grammy Award nominated Spanish-Mexican singer, songwriter, dancer and actress, who debuted in 2003 with the self-titled album, Belinda, under Sony BMG and RCA Records. She started her acting career as a child actor at the age of 10 when she was cast as the lead role in the Mexican children’s telenovela Amigos x siempre.

On October 18, 2007, Belinda won two awards, Video of the Year for 鈥淏ella Traici贸n鈥� and Best Solo Artist at the MTV Video Music Awards Latinoamerica.

7. Javier Fernandez

Javier Fern谩ndez, 2018 – Wikimedia Commons

Javier Fern谩ndez L贸pez was born on 15 April 1991 in Madrid. He is a Spanish former figure skater. He is the second man to break the 100-point barrier in the short program, the 200-point barrier in the long program, and the 300-point barrier in the total score.

Lopez is the 2018 Olympic bronze medalist, a two-time World champion (2015, 2016), a two-time World bronze medalist (2013, 2014), a seven-time European champion (2013鈥�2019), a two-time Grand Prix Final silver medalist (2014, 2015), a three-time Rostelecom Cup champion (2014鈥�2016), a two-time Grand Prix in France champion (2016鈥�2017) and an eight-time Spanish national champion (2010, 2012鈥�2018). The Gold Medal of the Royal Order of Sports Merit by the Spanish government on 19 April 2016.

8. Peneope Cruz

Pen茅lope Cruz – Flickr

Pen茅lope Cruz S谩nchez was born on 28 April 1974 in Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain. She is a Spanish actress who has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award, four Golden Globe Awards, and five Screen Actors Guild Awards. She is the first and only Spanish actress to be nominated for and to win an Academy Award, as well as the first to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Furthermore, she made her acting debut at 16 on television, and her feature film debut the following year in Jam贸n Jam贸n (1992). In addition to acting, she has modelled for Mango, Ralph Lauren, and L’Or茅al and  designed clothing for Mango.

9. Carlos Sainz Sr.

Carlos Sainz Sr – Flickr

Carlos Sainz Cenamor was born on 12 April 1962 in Madrid. He is a Spanish rally driver who won the World Rally Championship drivers’ title with Toyota in 1990 and 1992, and finished runner-up four times. He was also the first non-Nordic driver to win the 1000 Lakes Rally in Finland.

Sainz received the Princess of Asturias Sports Award in 2020. Carlos has won the Dakar Rally (2010, 2018, 2020), the Race of Champions (1997) and the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (1990).

10. Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres – Flickr

Fernando Jos茅 Torres Sanz was born on 20 March 1984 in Fuenlabrada, Community of Madrid. He is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a striker. He is the current manager of Atl茅tico Madrid Juvenil A. In 2012 he won the Golden Boot for highest goalscorer.

He made his first-team debut in 2001 with Atl茅tico Madrid. In 2007, he joined Premier League club Liverpool, where he marked his first season at Anfield by being Liverpool’s first player since Robbie Fowler in the 1995鈥�96 season to score more than 20 league goals in a season. Torres left the club in January 2011 to join Chelsea for a British record transfer fee of 拢50 million, which made him the most expensive Spanish player in history. Torres retired from the game back in August 2019, when he was playing for Sagan Tosu.