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Scotland’s men’s national football team has clinched a spot in the World Cup for the first time since 1998. In a thrilling encounter at Hampden Park in Glasgow, Steve Clarke’s squad triumphed over Denmark with a 4-2 victory, sealed by a remarkable goal scored from the halfway line during added time. The win was essential for automatic qualification; anything less than a win would have resulted in play-offs to secure a place in the 2026 tournament, which will be hosted across Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Supporters from all over Scotland, including cities like Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Inverness, made the journey to witness the historic moment.
The Scottish team will discover their opponents for the World Cup when the draw takes place on 5 December. First Minister John Swinney expressed his pride on social media, writing: “Fabulously well done. Such a joy to watch such an amazing, spirited performance.” The match itself saw an early spectacular moment when Scott McTominay scored with an overhead bicycle kick just three minutes in. Although Denmark managed to equalise twice, Scotland held firm and regained the lead through Lawrence Shankland and then later in extra time by Kieran Tierney. In the dying moments, Kenny McLean’s stunning goal from his own half finalized the score.
The victory sparked jubilant celebrations among fans, many of whom shared emotional reflections with BBC Scotland. One supporter who had lost his voice said, “It means everything. I was only seven when we went to France,” referring to Scotland’s last World Cup appearance in 1998. He recounted predicting two of the goals and described the experience as “absolutely amazing.” Another fan, who had brought his son along, spoke of the electric atmosphere and the long-awaited return, stating, “The whole country is going to be buzzing.” Meanwhile, in Glasgow’s Church on the Hill pub near Hampden, fans like Colin McLean and his son Andrew joined the celebrations, with Colin noting, “I think I’ve missed two games in 20 years. I’ve never seen anything like that.”
The journey to this moment has been long and challenging. Scotland’s last World Cup participation prior to this was in 1998, under the management of Craig Brown, where they exited at the group stage after losses to Brazil and Morocco and a draw with Norway. Since then, the national team endured a prolonged absence from major tournaments, failing to qualify for six consecutive World Cups and missing five European Championships in a row. Under Steve Clarke’s leadership, Scotland finally returned to Euro 2020 after a 24-year
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