Scotland continue their World Cup adventure as they face a crucial clash with Morocco in Boston.
The Tartan Army were out in force in the city as Steve Clarke’s side celebrated their return to the tournament with a 1-0 win over Haiti in their opening fixture. While an imperfect performance, three valuable points leave the knockout rounds well within reach – though the task gets significantly tougher against a talented team that were semi-finalists four years ago.
A 1-1 draw with Brazil came as something of a disappointment given how the North African side controlled much of the action, and they will go top of Group C with a victory here that would book their own place in the last-32. There will be hope – and perhaps even expectation – of a better showing within the Scottish support as they seek another famous World Cup night.
Follow all of the latest ahead of kick off with our live blog below:
Could the Boston wind play in Scotland’s favour?
The long and crawling road towards Foxborough has seen Scotland and Morocco fans opting to walk towards the stadium. The traditional yellow school buses, with members of the Tartan Army hanging out the windows, another sign of the fanbase’s creative approach to keeping costs down. Dozens walking on sidewalks that slink around these busy roads that wrap around Gillette Stadium, while some fans are enjoying a kick about in the car parks that line Providence Highway.
It’s sweltering out there at 26C and likely to be a factor in tonight’s game. But one Scotland fan tells me the Boston wind swirling around is their advantage: “The Moroccans won’t be as used to playing in the wind as us.”
USA vs Australia LIVE
Back to the build-up to today’s second helping of World Cup action in a moment, but it’s all kicking off between the USA and Australia in Seattle. You can follow LIVE coverage of that fascinating encounter here:
Tartan Army out in full force
The Scots have taken over Boston and kilts abound around North Station; they look set to outnumber the Moroccans, who had an immense presence against Brazil in New York.
Plenty of drinks flowing, while the Scots appears eager to sample the local delicacies, too, with plenty of navy and peach pink tops in the queues for oysters.
The talk among the Tartan Army is increasingly confident too, the wave of joy has outweighed any trauma from the past and missing out on qualification to the knockout phase on goal difference.
A point will almost certainly do it for Steve Clarke’s men today.
Group C fixtures
There are two more encounters in Group C today, with the clash between Brazil and Haiti following the conclusion to proceedings here.
Brazil 1-1 Morocco, MetLife Stadium, New Jersey
Haiti 0-1 Scotland, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough
19 June, 11pm: Scotland v Morocco, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough
20 June, 1:30am: Brazil v Haiti, Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
24 June, 11pm: Scotland v Brazil, Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens
24 June, 11pm: Morocco v Haiti, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
World Cup 2026 kits: Every home and away shirt ranked and rated
There are plenty of Scottish shirts on show in Boston today – and a few Morocco jerseys, too. Where did they rank in Lawrence Ostlere’s definitive list of kits before the tournament?
The irony of a World Cup in Trump’s America? The most multinational tournament of all-time
After the first round of group games provide moments of high euphoria for minnow countries, Miguel Delaney takes a look at why, this time, smaller countries are benefiting from western European wealth:
Christian Pulisic ruled out of USA v Australia
Breaking news from tonight’s 8pm clash: Christian Pulisic is out due to the calf injury he picked up during the win against Paraguay.
That’s a huge blow for co-hosts the USA, given how well Pulisic played in their opening 4-1 win. Ricardo Pepi starts in his place.
Mauricio Pochettino confirmed that Pulisic is unavailable during an interview with Fox Sports, but sounded optimistic that he’ll be back soon…
“The evolution is [going] really well. Today he was training in the morning in the camp and I’ve seen the feelings are good.
“I hope as soon as possible he can be ready to be selected again and to be part of the team. Now, we need to be focused on our team and the players that are going to play.
“We have ahead a very important game and Australia is going to be really tough. [But] a little bit sad because he wanted to stay, he wanted to participate today.”
Why Socceroos’ World Cup breakthrough has come at the right time for fractious Australia
The first match this evening sees the US takes on Australia, with kick-off at 8pm BST.
Alan Smith writes that a Socceroos squad from diverse backgrounds has broken through just as Australia’s far-right, anti-immigration party surges in the polls – the timing might be perfect.
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