Euro 2024: Thousands Of Scottish Supporters Start Partying In Germany

Scottish fans partying in Munich (photo: x bestgue)

JAKARTA Tens of thousands of Scottish muai fans flooded Munich by plane, train, and car, singing, drinking, and creating a party atmosphere in the southern German city on Thursday 13 June ahead of the start of Euro 2024.

In the Marienplitz square in the city center, Tartan Army members kept the waiters busy on orders for drinks, just stopping for a moment to stand up and singing "Flower of Scotland" when a group of bagpipe players started playing the national anthem.

For supporters like Jess Barber, who traveled 34 hours from Australia to join her brother and surprise her father, the opportunity to support Scotland abroad for the first time since the 1998 World Cup in France was too great to miss.

This tournament is also different from the previous European Cup when COVID-19 restrictions dampened the atmosphere. "My two flights from Melbourne and Bangkok were full of Scottish people who came to Germany," Barber said. "We arrived at 5 am and went straight to the city center. We haven't even been to the hotel yet."

Scotland started their campaign against Germany on Friday in Munich, hoping to get a surprise that could help them qualify from the group stage for the first time in 11 tournaments.

Germany also relies on a wave of enthusiasm from their own supporters and is estimated at 2.7 million visitors for the June 14 to July 14 events with a large fan zone set up in all major cities.

"I hope for a second fairy tale, like the 2006 summer fairy tale," Siegfried Rothe, 67, one of several people wearing German socks and football caps in the city in the middle of the day, recalls Germany's World Cup.

German officials estimate more than 100,000 Scottish supporters will head to Munich for the opening games and many will come without tickets. They prefer to go to the Fan Zone or bar.

Some face big challenges. Craig Fyfe and his friends found cheaper ways to fly to Prague and take the train to Munich, a six-hour trip that was made easy with Czech beer and other like-minded supporters.

"We grew up seeing Scotland not qualify and this is the first tournament we can visit and enjoy the atmosphere," said Fyfe, a 28-year-old man from Glasgow. "Everyone came by plane, train and car."

While thousands of police will be deployed around the clock in an effort to address potential threats from Islamists, hoodigans, violent individuals, and cyberattacks, the atmosphere in Munich shows that the biggest problem is stopping parties.

Michael Wright and his brother David brought their young children so they plan to keep the party under control, but Bill Lawless, 65, as long as he's inbank, have other ideas. "We'll enjoy the game either winning, losing, or drawing," he said. "It's about your party."