After the World Cup win over Argentina, Saudi Arabia declares a public holiday on Wednesday.

 After the World Cup win over Argentina, Saudi Arabia declares a public holiday on Wednesday.

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This is not an April Fools' Day joke. Just days after defeating their South American rivals with a score of 2-1, the Saudis announced that they will be observing today as a public holiday. In fact, it was only last year that such a celebration was made possible, to begin with! The country's King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has announced this in light of what he called "a victory for all Arab and Muslim players". So it's time to retire from work and enjoy yourself from this Wednesday onwards!

According to a Saudi government spokesman, Ahmed al-Rumaihi, "this gives Saudis the opportunity to remember the victory together with their families and friends, and enjoy an all-day affair that will give everyone a good feeling". 

Al-Rumaihi went on to explain the significance of today: "Saudi Arabia is not known for its tolerance of homosexuality", but this is different! Because "Arab and Muslim" players won this time.

As for the game itself, Rumaihi assured Saudis that it will be as exciting as always: "a complete carbon copy of a normal World Cup game". He finished off by citing Prophet Muhammad's legacy: "in times of difficulty, we shall always prevail and win."

Saudi Arabia has suffered a lot of criticism for not allowing women to enter the stadiums in order to watch their men represent the country. However, this statement by Saud Al-Qahtani clears up these allegations.

But still, Islamic scholar Fadl Al-Ishaan emphasized that women must respect men more and how they should go about doing so: "by wearing properly shaded abayas that cover up every part of their body except for the eyes. This is much less provoking than allowing them to walk around in miniskirts, which would make men lose control of themselves. I am sickened by how they even dare to show their eyes; a woman's eyes are probably what a man loves the most, and seeing that is equivalent to looking at her nakedness."

Al-Ishaan finished off by saying: "if you want to let them go around freely, be my guest. But don't blame us for doing the same."