Can confirm, the average level of English in Spain is pretty bad. Even in Madrid, where I lived for a year. It's almost like they're proud of it - AFAIK they're very protective of their language, dubbing every movie (at least until recently), which in turn limits their exposure to English.
On the other hand, living in Spain and speaking fluent English can be almost like a superpower in some circumstances.
And why wouldn't they be proud of it? Countries that intentionally focus on their own language (e.g. Japan or France) have managed to maintain more of their own cultures, while smaller ones have been more easily gobbled up by global American culture.
On the other hand, living in Spain and speaking fluent English can be almost like a superpower in some circumstances.