‘I much prefer it to Rangers and Celtic’: Scotland’s World Cup qualification unites a nation

The prognosis from the north Glasgow primary schools squad had been bleak. “Everybody says Scotland are going to get pumped,” my eight-year told me as he left football training on Tuesday evening, with a realism born of experience even over his short life. But three hours later, Scotland fans across the nation and beyond were catapulted beyond euphoria as their team qualified for the World Cup for the first time in more than a quarter of a century after a bum-squeaking, breathtaking 4-2 win against Denmark at Hampden. “It was the drama of it,” croaks Hamish Husband, veteran of the west of Scotland Tartan Army, his voice still frayed from the Hampden stands. “Even John McGinn said we were rubbish,” – he references the Scotland midfielder’s robust analysis immediately after the game – “but that fourth goal …” He trails off, perhaps recalling how Kenny McLean scored a final stunning goal from his own half with just seconds of extra time to go. Related: Scotland’s wild World Cup moment was built by collective will and individual brilliance | Ewan Murray It’s impossible to overstate the effect this success will have on the nation in the run-up to June next year, says Husband, who recalls his first World Cup away game to Prague in 1976. “No matter what you think of football it creates an enormous amount of positivity in these difficult times, with Scotland appearing on the world stage for a younger generation of fans who’ve never experienced that before.” When the Tartan Army congregate for the tournament next year, alongside America’s Scottish diaspora, it will probably replicate the ebullient scenes of Euro 2025, when an estimated 200,000 fans descended on Germany, and won the hearts of (almost) all who encountered them despite their team’s abysmal performance on the pitch. The unofficial anthem of the Euros was the viral hit No Scotland No Party, by Nick Morgan, who writes and performs music alongside his work as a postman in Kilmarnock. After playing at a pre-game gig near Hampden on Tuesday, Morgan watched the match in a city centre pub, hearing the crowd belting out his ironclad hook. Morgan reveals that he has been working on a new song for the World Cup, but insists he’ll only release it “if it feels right”. Still a little dazed from the night before, Morgan declares it was “a real ‘where were you?’ moment”. He remembers rushing home from school as a teenager to watch Scotland play Brazil in their last World Cup fixture. (They lost 2-1 on that occasion.) “Now this is reaching a whole new generation. It’s unbelievable, a great time to be Scottish.” “It will definitely inspire boys and girls, to play and keep playing,” says Laura Montgomery, chief executive and former medal winner for Glasgow City FC, who has been instrumental in the development of the flourishing national women’s game. Montgomery is speaking from Portugal ahead of the team’s winner-takes-all match tonight with Sporting CP, which could see them progress to the quarter-finals of the inaugural Uefa women’s Europa Cup. “It’s great financially for the SFA, and that cash injection should benefit the whole ecosystem of men, women’s and youth teams,” she says, pointing out that elite youth provision for girls has “nowhere near the equality of funding” it deserves. In Glasgow city centre, fans were still reaching for adequate descriptors to capture the enormity of the win. “A miracle,” says Joseph, beaming down Buchanan Street with three student pals. All 18, this will be the first time they’ve seen their team compete at this level. “I much prefer it to Rangers and Celtic,” says Fraser, “because it brings the country together. It crosses over any religion or politics.” “If we play well it does,” his friend Sam offers of the crucial qualification. By Wednesday midday, the unashamed cashing in had begun in earnest, with Barrhead Travel urging fans to book ahead from their range of tailored World Cup packages. “There’s definitely a buzz around town this morning,” says Rachel Breen, who doesn’t usually consider herself a football fan but admits she is currently pricing tickets to Miami. “That’s the thinking now, but I might calm down later. It was a really exciting game.” “I had nothing to base my hope on,” admits Daniel Zanieri, who works in tech sales, “but it felt like something special was going to happen.” “I walked into an office this morning where only 30% watched the game but every single person was talking about it. One hundred per cent it brings people together. Especially when it’s so cold and dark outside, it gives everyone a lift.”