Scotland fans have been some of the loudest supporters at the World Cup, and Boston has felt every bit of it during a wild few days in the city.
The Tartan Army waited 28 years for this return, so Saturday’s 1-0 win over Haiti was never going to be celebrated quietly after John McGinn gave Steve Clarke’s side the perfect start.
They have taken over restaurants and pubs, marched through the city and even turned up at Fenway Park, but the scale of the drinking has now become its own story. Several bars have revealed numbers that boggle the American mind, with one Boston venue saying it has never seen anything like it.
Boston bars reveal how much Scotland fans have drunk at World Cup
Speaking to NBC News, Sam Adams said its Boston Taproom ran out of Samuel Adams Boston Lager over the weekend because Scottish supporters “drank it dry”.
From Thursday to Sunday, the brewery said the Tartan Army drank four times as much Boston Lager as it would normally sell during a typical four-day holiday stretch such as the Fourth of July.
Sam Adams even had to schedule an emergency delivery on Saturday morning just to keep up with demand.
That is even more impressive given the cost of drinking around this World Cup. Scotland fans face huge beer prices in Boston, with stadium drinks far more expensive than many traveling supporters would be used to back home.
Hennessy’s Bar in downtown Boston told The Boston Globe that it tripled its St Patrick’s Day sales and sold out of beer altogether on Sunday night.
Noelle Somers, the bar’s chief operating officer, said: “We’ve been here for over 30 years, and we’ve never seen anything like it.”
Federal Wine & Spirits in the Financial District also sold out of Budweiser and Corona on Saturday, while the door on one refrigerator broke from being opened and closed so often.
After some Scotland supporters revealed five-figure World Cup spending just to follow the team, it is clear the trip has become a major boost for local businesses too.
Scotland face Morocco next at Boston Stadium in Foxborough on Friday. Bars in Boston and elsewhere will be hoping the Scots stay in the tournament as long as possible, and that the cash keeps flowing.
