Quickly, the media took hold of the story, and for nearly four years, vigorous public debate ensued. People all across Spain signed petitions and spoke out in support of the bulls' continued existence. Osborne protested the fine and the orders of removal in court. And in December of 1997, much to Osborne's delight and surprise, the Spanish Supreme Court acknowledged that the Osborne bull is indeed integral to the Spanish countryside - so much so that citizens identify themselves with it. In the words of the court, "It has gone beyond its initial advertising purpose and has become part of the landscape. As a result, it is declared a part of Spain's National Heritage."

Today there are 90 bulls and counting. El Toro is recognizable not only to the people of Spain but also to people all over the world. It has become synonymous with the Iberian country, regardless of whether people know of its humble advertising beginnings. Osborne celebrated the bull's 50th anniversary in 2006 and 2007 with Art Bulls for Charity, a campaign to raise funds for Share Our Strength's fight against childhood hunger. Noted personalities with connections to Spain - visual and performing artists, chefs, actors, fashion designers, and the like, including actors Antonio Banderas and Angie Harmon and chefs Jacques Pépin and Ferran Adrià - decorated three-by-three-foot scale models of the Osborne bull for exhibition in New York, Dallas, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, and Washington, D.C. They were then auctioned online in conjunction with the 2007 Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival in Miami in late February.