Iceland made it to its first major tournament last week when the Icelandic national football team qualified for the European Championship for the first time, becoming the smallest nation to ever do so. The championship is scheduled to be held in France from 10th of June to the 10th of July 2016 and many Icelanders plan to attend the sporting event, prompting some couples to push back their intended wedding dates.
“You cannot throw a wedding when half the nation is abroad,” groom-to-be Hilmar Gunnarsson told Morgunblaðið newspaper. Hilmar and his fiancé, Oddny Þóra Logadóttir, had talked about getting married on June 11th, but soon realised that date might not be ideal as a large group of their friends intended to travel to France to cheer on the Icelandic team.
The priest too
According to Morgunblaðið’s report, very few weddings have been booked between the 10th of June and 10th of July – a period usually overflowing with beautiful summer weddings.
And it’s not just the guests that plan to attend the sporting event, its also the priests. “I’ve noticed that fewer weddings have been booked during that time period and I, myself, plan to take my holidays during the tournament,” priest and football fan Guðni Már Harðarson said.
Swedish coach Lars Lagerbäck guided the Icelandic team, affectionately dubbed “strákarnir okkar” (Our boys), to victory against the Netherlands and a goalless draw against Kazakhstan on the 6th of September, guaranteeing the Iceland a place as one of the top two finishers in group A, along with the Czech Republic.
Iceland made it to its first major tournament last week when the Icelandic national football team qualified for the European Championship for the first time, becoming the smallest nation to ever do so. The championship is scheduled to be held in France from 10th of June to the 10th of July 2016 and many Icelanders plan to attend the sporting event, prompting some couples to push back their intended wedding dates.
“You cannot throw a wedding when half the nation is abroad,” groom-to-be Hilmar Gunnarsson told Morgunblaðið newspaper. Hilmar and his fiancé, Oddny Þóra Logadóttir, had talked about getting married on June 11th, but soon realised that date might not be ideal as a large group of their friends intended to travel to France to cheer on the Icelandic team.
The priest too
According to Morgunblaðið’s report, very few weddings have been booked between the 10th of June and 10th of July – a period usually overflowing with beautiful summer weddings.
And it’s not just the guests that plan to attend the sporting event, its also the priests. “I’ve noticed that fewer weddings have been booked during that time period and I, myself, plan to take my holidays during the tournament,” priest and football fan Guðni Már Harðarson said.
Swedish coach Lars Lagerbäck guided the Icelandic team, affectionately dubbed “strákarnir okkar” (Our boys), to victory against the Netherlands and a goalless draw against Kazakhstan on the 6th of September, guaranteeing the Iceland a place as one of the top two finishers in group A, along with the Czech Republic.
