By William Schomberg and Eric Cox
BOSTON, June 17 (Reuters) – Bars in Boston are gearing up for a second tidal wave of drinking by Scotland’s Tartan Army of football fans who nearly drained some pubs of all their beer in the first weekend of their World Cup occupation of the city.
When Scotland beat Haiti 1-0 on Saturday in their first World Cup appearance since 1998, bar staff had to scramble for emergency supplies to satisfy the country’s famously raucous and thirsty fans who have packed into Boston by the tens of thousands.
“I’ve been in this business for over 30 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” Billy DeCain, general manager of the Sam Adams Tap Room in the city centre, said.
At one point last weekend, the bar had to call in a special truck delivery from a Sam Adams brewery to cope with the seemingly insatiable demand for beer from the Scots, and even then DeCain worried that they might have to resort to selling only cans.
“We just about made it through. If we didn’t have those emergency deliveries it would have been a tall task,” he said on Wednesday, as fans sipped on pints as they killed time before Friday’s match against Morocco.
Like the Haiti game, the match will take place at the vast stadium home of the New England Patriots American football team in the suburban town of Foxborough.
‘ON ADRENALINE ALL WEEKEND’
DeCain said for Americans the equivalent level of excitement would be if their favourite American football team reached the Super Bowl for the first time.
“You’re on adrenaline all weekend, and you could definitely see that,” he said of the Scots and their first World Cup adventure in almost 30 years. “Do they ever sleep? Do they ever get tired? They were back at it the next day at 11 a.m.”
The celebratory energy of the Tartan Army in Boston – which included a march to the strains of massed bagpipes to the Fenway Park home of the Boston Red Sox baseball team on Sunday – has won over many people in the city.
The mayor of Boston, Michelle Wu, said local people had instantly connected with the visiting fans’ love for their football.
“We count ourselves as among the most passionate and crazy sports fans anywhere. So, to see that same level of commitment and dedication, that brings true respect,” Wu – wearing a blue Scotland shirt on the steps of Boston City Hall – told Reuters.
“The Scottish fans are the absolute best. They have been incredibly warm, they’ve been supporting our businesses, they have been getting to know our community and treating Boston as if it were another home away from home for them,” Wu said. “So, I hope that the Tartan Army will keep coming back to Boston.”
After the Morocco game, Scotland will face Brazil in Miami while Boston will get ready for the visit of Scotland’s ‘auld enemy’ England and their own army of fans ahead of England’s match against Ghana in Foxborough next Tuesday.
(Writing by William SchombergEditing by Toby Davis)
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