Saudi Arabia has said Wednesday November 23rd 2022 will be a national holiday following its seismic 2-1 World Cup win over Lionel Messi’s Argentina.
King Salman approved a suggestion made by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to celebrate the national team’s victory with a holiday.
The national football side’s remarkable victory was being seen as both a triumph on the pitch and a huge moment on the global sports stage, where the regional power has long sought a place in the spotlight.
Outsiders against an Argentine team on a 36-match winning streak surely delivered that and, on Tuesday afternoon and evening, it was all that mattered to Saudi leaders and the fans who circled public squares in convoys of cars, waving the country’s green flag and proclaiming a new era of international football.
The public holiday will be for all state employees “and the private sector, and male and female students in all educational stages”, the government announced on Tuesday evening.
The announcement follows a similar move by Cameroon during the 1990 World Cup in Italy, when the unfancied African team beat Argentina and also declared a public holiday the following day.
