Wednesday, November 23, has been proclaimed a public holiday in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in honour of the nation’s historic victory over the favourite Argentina during a FIFA World Cup game in Qatar.
According to Tuesday’s Khaleej Times report, it applies to all workers in the public and private sectors as well as to all students nationwide.
Unheralded Saudi Arabia stunned Argentina 2-1 earlier today, defeating Lionel Messi’s team in one of the biggest World Cup upsets in tournament history.
The 35-year-old Messi scored a penalty in the 10th minute of his fifth and final attempt to win the only major trophy still out of reach during a commanding first half performance in which he and Lautaro Martinez also had three goals disallowed for offside.
However, at the start of the second half, Saudi Arabia, the tournament’s second-lowest-ranked team after Ghana, threw caution to the wind and charged at Argentina’s defence in front of an enthused 88,012 crowd.
PM Shehbaz Sharif tweeted in response to the kingdom’s triumph, “What a football game it was! By pulling off the biggest upset in today’s nail-biting FIFA World Cup match against Argentina, Saudi Arabia made history. Best wishes to HRH Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. We rejoice with our Saudi brothers and sisters over this impressive victory.
What a game of football it was! Saudi Arabia made history today by staging the biggest upset in FIFA World Cup thriller against Argentina. Heartiest congratulations to HRH Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. We share the happiness of our Saudi brothers & sisters on this great win.
— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) November 22, 2022
Saudi Arabia Declare Holiday Over Win
It has happened before that a public holiday was declared following a World Cup victory. Similar comments were made about Cameroon’s outstanding performance against Argentina in the 1990 tournament’s opening game, which is frequently cited as one of the biggest upsets in football history.
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