The World Cup final is scheduled to take place around 9.30 p.m. local time on Sunday. With wedding parties usually beginning at around 10-11 p.m., many people are rescheduling their weddings to 7 or 8 p.m. to ensure a high turnout.
One Saudi man who is to marry on Sunday has contacted his caterers to arrange food to be served after Maghrib prayer, which is just past 7 p.m. “I’ve arranged for a lot of food to be delivered and I’m worried the food will be spoiled if people don’t turn up,” he said.
Another man who is also to marry on Sunday said he was left disappointed a few days ago when many of his guests excused themselves in advance from attending the wedding. He’s also been forced to bring his party early.
One man said he’s not taking any chances and has installed a huge plasma screen at the wedding hall so guests can enjoy the World Cup final. “It’s the most important night in my life and I am not going to risk spoiling it because of the World Cup. If it’s the final they want to watch, then that’s what they will watch,” he added.
Another Saudi groom has taken a special Al-Jazeera subscription and installed three huge screens at his wedding hall. “This match isn’t just important for my guests but also for me. If anyone wants to greet me, then I won’t be sitting at the entrance as is customary, but will be with my guests in front of the large television,” he added.
Mukhtar Abdul Rahman, a newlywed who married on Friday, said a large number of guests who he had been invited were absent because of the quarterfinal between Ghana and Uruguay. “Many of them said they were sick all of a sudden and others said their relatives were in hospital. I later learned that many of them were in coffee shops watching the World Cup,” he said.
“There was one guest who was basically following up on the match every five minutes. By the time dinner was served at around 12 a.m., it was penalty shootout and around 30 guests had gathered around him because he was getting second-to-second updates on who was scoring and who was missing,” he added.
“I made a massive mistake — I should have set up a large TV at wedding hall.”
