were ever made official. The national anthem has been played without words since 1978, when lyrics that had been approved by General Franco were abandoned. Lyrics competition After witnessing a rendition of You'll Never Walk Alone at Anfield in 2007, the President of the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE), Alejandro Blanco, said he felt inspired to seek lyrics to ahead of Madrid's bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games. That same year Telecinco, enticed by the COE, organized a national contest and posted 25 different lyrics on their website which they thought best matched COE's requirements. The winner was chosen, although only 40,000 people voted. The lyrics by Enrique Hernández-Luike, magazine publisher and poet, spoke of freedom, peace and the Constitution. The winning lyrics were sung by the Ronda de Aranzueque choir in Pastrana, and filmed by German television. However, the COE organized a new competition for the lyrics, which resulted in between 2,000 and 7,000 entries (depending on source). A private team of jurors chose the entry by Paulino Cubero, then unemployed. The new lyrics received criticism, resulting in them being pulled only five days later, and the idea was scrapped indefinitely. A number of the autonomous communities of Spain have their own regional anthems. Former lyrics Lyrics during Alfonso XIII's reign Lyrics by Eduardo Marquina (1879–1946) La bandera de España (Coro) Gloria, gloria, corona de la Patria, soberana luz que es oro en tu Pendón. Vida, vida, futuro de la Patria, que en tus ojos es abierto corazón...! Púrpura y oro: bandera inmortal; en tus colores, juntas, carne y alma están. Púrpura y oro: querer y lograr; Tú eres, bandera, el signo del humano afán. España guiadora (Solo) ¡Pide, España! ¡Tu nombre llevaremos donde quieras tú; que honrarlo es nuestra ley! ¡Manda, España, y unidos lucharemos, porque vivas tú, sin tregua pueblo y rey! Una bandera gloriosa nos das; ¡nadie, viviendo, España, nos la arrancará! Para que, un día, nos pueda cubrir, ¡danos, España, el gozo de morir por ti! ¡Viva España!... (Coro) ¡Viva España! Del grito de la Patria, la explosión triunfal abrió camino al sol; ¡Viva España! repiten veinte pueblos y al hablar dan fe del ánimo español... ¡Marquen arado martillo y clarín su noble ritmo al grito de la Patria fe! ¡Guíe la mente a la mano hasta el fin, al "Viva España" asista toda España en pie! Flag of Spain (Chorus) Glory, glory, crown of