JOSHUA GRANGER

As Scotland get ready to head to their first World Cup in 26 years, there have been calls for extended opening hours for pubs during the tournament to allow home fans to enjoy the games.

Scotland’s 3-2 win over Denmark in November brought the country together as Steve Clarke’s men qualified the country for their first World Cup since 1998.

CREDIT SCOTLAND NATIONAL TEAM YOUTUBE

With the tournament being in North America, Scotland’s games against Haiti, Morocco and Brazil will kick off late into the night, with the Haiti game kicking off at 2am and the games against Morocco and Brazil kicking off at 11pm UK time.

These obscure kick-off times have sparked debate over whether Scottish pubs should be allowed to stay open later to accommodate the Tartan Army, who are staying at home to watch the matches, giving them a chance to go out and take in the atmosphere during the tournament.

We asked supporters how they would feel about pubs having extended opening hours for the Scotland games during the tournament.

During the 2022 Euros, there were various fan watch parties all around the country where fans could go to watch the matches with other supporters .

Cara Beck, a Scotland fan, spoke about the whole country being able to enjoy the World Cup, stating, Everybody’s will be enjoying themselves, so we may as well all do it together.” Another Scotland fan, Robbie Swift spoke about being able to watch Scotland at the World Cup for the first time and the importance of being able to enjoy it, stating “It is the first in a lifetime for me Scotland qualifying the World Cup so I would like to enjoy it.”

Extended opening hours for pubs could ultimately lead to a further boost in the Scottish economy as it could see an increase in employment opportunities

The positive impact which Scottish football has had on the economy has already been shown in a recent survey conducted by the Scottish Professional Football League(SPFL) found that football gives £820 million to the national economy.

These financial findings further show how vital football and its supporters are to the country’s economy, and the supporters will continue to show that in the summer

Here is a report on what the positives could be for pubs having extended opening hours for supporters.

The 2026 World Cup in the summer is going to be a massive moment for the Tartan Army due to length of time since the country were last at the tournament and fans who are attending the tournament and those who watching the tournament from are sure going to want enjoy the experience.