While Scotland may not have quite had the success they hoped for on the pitch at the World Cup, it is hard to deny that they have become recognised as some of the tournament's best fans.
From drinking Boston dry, through to bagpipes in the heat of Florida, the Tartan Army has been showing everyone that there is "No Scotland, No Party".
On global digital platforms, the Tartan Army has repeatedly gone viral for their infectious merrymaking and respectful behaviour, such as widespread media coverage praising fans for cleaning up the streets and spots around Fenway Park after celebrating.
You may be wondering why I am even raising the national team's journey to the World Cup in an accountancy blog — beyond national pride, of course.
If you follow any kind of social media, the sentiment from other nations' fans and the US hosts is that they love Scotland.
While there is yet to be any official data on the impact of the current showing at the World Cup, according to data from VisitScotland, there has been a measurable statistical precedent for this.
Following the Tartan Army's celebrated behaviour in Germany during Euro 2024, travel sentiment and actual holiday bookings from German tourists to Scotland experienced a clear, quantifiable spike.
Scottish tourism officials explicitly built their 2026 US marketing campaigns around the expectation of an identical "feel-good factor" return.
Of course, it isn't just the potential visitors to our beautiful country that we need to consider, but also the iconic products and the supply chains that feed them.
American fans have been trying Irn-Bru for the first time, and inevitably, many Bostonians have been talking about whisky.
So, if you are reading this and lamenting the on-pitch performance of Scotland, you may be missing the opportunity that the fan base has created for the nation's economy.
It will be interesting to see if we see a sudden spike in visitors to the tourist hotspots near our offices from America and the other participating nations' fanbases in the months and years to come.
Let's hope the Tartan Army continue to get opportunities to show what Scotland has to offer, but let's not wait another 28 years for another World Cup appearance.
If you see an increased interest in your Scottish business, whether as a result of the World Cup or for any other reason, our team at Scholes is here and ready to help.
