Argentina has beaten France to win the 2022 World Cup in overtime penalties, 4-2. The final score came after a 120-minute game that ran into overtime with the score still tied at 3-3.
The 35-year-old captain of the Argentine team, Lionel Messi, also announced that this year’s World Cup is his last game.
35-year-old Lionel Messi is crowned player of the World Cup ? pic.twitter.com/EDUGtN9dVZ
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) December 18, 2022
The final win came on the first night of Hanukkah.
In the State of Israel, fans on both sides lit their menorahs and then were held spellbound in various locations around the country as the two teams battled for the win, with the streets utterly silent as Israelis were glued to their screens.
In one southern Israeli community, at least one public school cancelled its school-wide Hanukkah party, complete with student performances, in response to strident pleas from parents who wanted to watch the game, which was taking place during the scheduled holiday celebration.
In the small northern Negev town of Arad, the Arad Shopping Mall held its Hanukkah menorah candle-lighting a few minutes before the start of the game, which was broadcast by the mall on to a huge screen for parents, children and even a tourist group to watch. A separate arts and crafts corner was set up by local Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries to entertain the youngest children.
“It comes only once in four years,” Elad resident B.L. explained in a conversation with JewishPress.com. “How can you miss it?”
