In anticipation of Scotland’s run in Euro 2024, a tourism director has referred to the Tartan Army as “fantastic ambassadors for Scotland” and expressed optimism that more tourists from host country Germany will travel to Scotland.

During Scotland’s participation in the tournament, over 200,000 Scottish supporters came to Germany to support their national side. VisitScotland, the nation’s tourism organisation, reported an 83% increase in website views from German users during this period.

14,925 German users were active on visitscotland.com between June 13 and June 23, up from 8,147 during the same period the previous year.

Pics of people wearing tartan Scotland fans cheering on their team in its first international competition since 1998 garnered international notice and were named the greatest supporters at this year’s tournament in a recent survey conducted by German media source RTL.

Malcolm Roughead, chief executive of VisitScotland, stated: “We firmly believe that the Tartan Army has served as outstanding representatives for Scotland and a tremendous source of support for our national side.

“Watching the scenes of Scotland supporters giving that iconic Scottish greeting and seeing such appreciation from the German supporters has been amazing.

We’ve seen a spike in German visitors to our website since the beginning of Euro 24, with visits nearly doubling over this time last year.

One of our most important international markets is Germany, where we spent £247 million and had 343,000 visits last year. According to our research, German tourists are drawn to Scotland because of its people, history, and landscapes—with Scotland supporters serving as a prime illustration of this.

“We’ll keep fostering this interest through our marketing initiatives, such as our most recent campaign, which focuses on important west German cities with high visitor demand and good access to Scotland.”

Over the course of the tournament, up to two million people are anticipated to view the mobile digital advertising campaign, which attempts to market Scotland as the ideal retreat for those looking to replace the football drama with breathtaking landscape.

In their second Euro 2024 Group A match, the Scots face the Swiss in Cologne in a game that might decide their fate.

Steve Clarke froze in place, gazing up at Germany’s highest mountain for a brief time as he took in the scenery.

In the picture-perfect ski resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Mount Zugspitze stands over Scotland’s training base. On a clear day like today, which there haven’t been many of these past few days, it is breathtakingly beautiful.

“This place is truly lovely, isn’t it?” remarked Scotland’s manager as the two of us took a quick stroll from the media centre to our separate hotels. There was just no way not to agree. Clarke said, winking and just barely grinning, “Well, let’s stay for a wee while longer then, eh?”

And as the realisation dawned, the national team manager may never have been more focused or assured than he is at this moment, ahead of a game that may perhaps define his entire career in the position.

Even if the crushing defeat they inflicted on Germany on the first night should have left them for dead, Clarke and his team will still be in the running for this tournament if they defeat Switzerland or even manage a draw against them in Cologne.

However, after spending the weekend back at the squad’s Bavarian base camp, Clarke seems to have slipped into an almost zen-like frame of mind. Over the course of Saturday, he booted some assholes and put an arm around some shoulders on Sunday after that enigmatic, horrifying malfunction in Munich.

Most importantly, though, is that Clarke seems to have found his own sense of self-belief again, even though the rest of the nation is still struggling with sentiments of significant doubt.

And, heaven forbid, a few of his own players as well.
When asked if the 5-1 drubbing at the Allianz, along with a dismal run of games leading up to this summer’s finals, would have given his team an inferiority complex at the worst possible time and place, Clarke responded coolly and said, “Maybe.”

“But we don’t have much time to get that back,” he continued. He’s also not joking.

Scotland, still nursing injuries, took off for a journey into Germany’s northwest yesterday, aware that they would not be able to survive another Group A loss in as many days.

Despite this, it seems as though Clarke is privy to information that the rest of us are not.

In order to restore their confidence, he went on, “it’s all about working on the mind. After that, we have to make sure that our tactics, bodies on the pitch, and style of play are all correct. That can instill a small amount of belief in them.

Naturally, we also want to get off to a strong start in the game, as we were not the best at it the other night. These tiny things can all add up. A professional football player who knows he’s a good player quickly regains his confidence.

We’ll be alright even if he appears a little nervous at first, as long as we play the Swiss game well and take appropriate action.

Either under dire circumstances or when a catastrophe seems imminent, he makes an excellent man manager. Or he’s a brilliant bluffer. We won’t have to wait long to find out in either case.

“We are chasing the clock on this one because the games come around so quickly,” admitted Clarke. However, we are fortunate to have an extra day to prepare because we were the first to play on Friday night.

This allows us a little more time to consider and refine our previous work before being ready for the next task. Thus, that works in our favour.

Since most of us have known one other for a very long time, it doesn’t take much to recall our goals and methods. Together, we don’t have any problems. I wouldn’t be seated here and the team would be led by someone else if we couldn’t collaborate effectively.

It will be someone else’s turn sooner than Clarke expects if he makes the same mistakes he did in Munich.

For example, considering the incomprehensible fashion in which Scotland gave over all midfield to their hosts, it is hard to imagine Billy Gilmour ever being the manager’s bench again.

But is Clarke prepared to acknowledge that that particular choice was the primary cause of that heartbreaking loss?

Alright, no. Not really.

With a shake of his head, Clarke stated, “It is tough to respond,” going on to say, “Is one guy really going to make that amount of difference in a 5-1 game where we were never in the game? Perhaps we are just placing too much pressure on Billy by bringing up the subject in that particular circumstance.

“Leave him enter the following game with a clear head if he is chosen. It is challenging. You are free to express yourself, and I will state that I don’t believe it changed anything. “Yes, it did make a difference,” you may respond. But regardless of how it turns out, we will never know the truth.

In actuality, though, all we know is that Switzerland entered the match on an unexpected high after surprising everyone by defeating Hungary 3-1 on Saturday to start their European campaign.

Even though they had a difficult time reaching to these finals, they are now seasoned tournament players and are already looking forward to the knockout phases, which usually occur for them on a clockwise basis.

“I thought they were really good the other night,” Clarke remarked. They seemed fine to me when I observed them in qualifying. They fulfilled the requirements.

You forget about Switzerland for a little while. They are, however, repeat qualifiers. And very invariably in the last eight or sixteen. They’re capable of doing it. They are aware of what to do.

They have speed up front and a fairly solid spine running through the middle of the club. This will be a challenging game.

When it was pointed out to Clarke, rather grimly, that Switzerland nearly always makes it to the final 16, that knowing smile almost burst out again.

With a nod, he acknowledged that it was true. So let’s endeavour to emulate Switzerland more!

Does that sound like a man who is prepared to leave and return home now?

Although Tierney understands that words are cheap, he would not apologise, but he did have a heartfelt thank you for the supporters of Scotland.

It won’t bother Kieran Tierney if people criticise his performance in the match against Germany.

He knew it wasn’t good enough, just like every other Scotland player present at the Allianz Arena on Friday night. But will he be able to go past it and go again in terms of his personality and mindset? That ought never to be contested in regards to Tierney.

The Arsenal defender will have been in more pain than anyone else following the 5-1 thrashing on the opening night of Euro 2024. Tierney is as devoted to the cause and as patriotic as they come. You witnessed it in Munich a few minutes later when he erupted in a roar in response to Scotland winning a goal-kick following a hard tackle.

Regretfully, for Tierney and all the other players wearing dark blue shirts, that was the extent of our competition during the entire game. The former Celtic guy was crushed by Steve Clarke’s surrender.

However, that does not lessen his conviction that, in addition to himself, the team has capable leaders who will make sure there is no hangover when they play Switzerland on Wednesday in Cologne. “The most important thing is that nothing is done yet,” Tierney stated, unable to wrap his mind around their German calamity. We know what needs to be done, and the next two games are huge.

We also possess the necessary qualities. It only needs to be demonstrated on the pitch. Without a doubt, we have the characters to make sure that this emotion passes quickly. There have been highs and lows in the careers of every member of this team. This will occupy everyone’s thoughts for some time. However, everyone has had a difficult loss at some point. It matters how you recover. That’s what makes you unique.

“I’m not the person to discuss our mindset. The key is to convey it. On Friday, we didn’t have it. However, it’s effortless for me to just stand here and speak. It’s about putting yourself out there and demonstrating it.

That’s where we fell short, and it will be crucial for us to address in the next two games. There are many leaders among us who have experienced a great deal. Here, we’ve got each other covered, and we’ll be prepared for the next match.

We still have four points to go, and we have to have faith in that. We’ve previously had some impressive victories over groups that have performed admirably at the Euros. We came to this place for a purpose. Furthermore, there is no reason why we can’t go after our goals.

“It goes without saying that Friday night left us in shock. Even though we didn’t treat ourselves fairly, we still need to get back up on our feet. Even after the first game, we knew we would never be able to qualify. Thus, the next two are crucial. We know what has to be done, and we’ll be determined to finish it.

Has our self-assurance been damaged? We were defeated by the score on Friday, so it’s expected. On any level, it would be painful for any team. But I’m confident that we can overcome this and return. If anything, it will increase our appetite to really go ahead and do it.

When Scotland was drawn against the hosts in Hamburg last year, there was always going to be an element of pressure difference. It was intimidating to start the tournament in front of 70,000 spectators at the Allianz. Furthermore, it appeared as though Clarke’s side had stage fright. Tierney, though, won’t admit that they froze. Rather, he believes they encountered a Germany juggernaut.

“It’s difficult to say the occasion played a part in our performance,” he stated. We were ready for the tournament’s opening game because we had known for a while that we would be playing in it.

Perhaps it did have an impact. However, I genuinely believe that the boys prepared for the game perfectly. We gave everything we did our whole attention. However, Germany is a top-tier squad, so anything may happen.

In every position, they are strong. They were even bringing on world-class players as substitutes. They got out to a stronger start than we did, and it’s difficult to rally from a two-point deficit in the opening 20 minutes of play.

“We had a challenging night. Now, though, is the time to consider what comes next and have faith that it can be accomplished. The next two teams are strong as well, but for now the focus is on us, our abilities, and how we can improve starting on Friday night. That is our main concern.

After their humiliation on Friday night, the Scottish squad owes the Tartan Army a result, if nothing else. Days earlier, supporters flocked to Munich in large numbers, only to depart from the Allianz disheartened and demoralised.

Tierney thanked them for their support instead of apologising. He adds that whatever success they go on to have in this competition will be for them. “Thank you,” is the word to the fans, said Tierney. For everything they’ve done and provided for us over the past however many years.

They were there for us the entire Friday, and it has been incredible. Walking out was amazing, and hearing them sing for us gave me chills. We therefore owe them a performance in the next two games to repay them for everything that they have done for us.