England and Scotland will both compete in a men's World Cup this month for the first time this century. Thomas Tuchel's squad flew out on Monday to a pre-tournament camp in Miami; Scotland flew to Florida on Sunday. For both nations, there are reasons to believe.
The buildup follows a gripping season of British football marked by agony and triumph. The men's Champions League final in Budapest ended in a penalty shootout – what the Guardian editorial described as “a sporting version of Russian roulette” – with Arsenal supporters seeing hope turn to despair as a ball fired over the crossbar. The Premier League champions held a triumphant Sunday parade, joined by the Arsenal women's team bus, as the massed hordes acclaimed their achievement in winning the inaugural Fifa Women's Champions Cup and reaching the Uefa Champions League semi-final. They remain the only English women's team to have won the latter.
“England and Scotland both compete in a men's World Cup this month for the first time this century.”
Scotland's most dramatic championship race for 40 years saw Hearts come within minutes of winning a first title since 1960, humbling the old firm duopoly of Rangers and Celtic. In England, Aston Villa won their first European trophy since the 1980s, and Crystal Palace the first in their history. No one who attended will forget the spectacle of south London en fête in Leipzig, where a joyous climax to the Uefa Conference League was staged between Palace and the Spanish side, Rayo Vallecano.
At the World Cup itself, several matches caught the eye. Ed Aarons called Paraguay 1-1 Germany “the match of the tournament”, noting that “Germany aren’t supposed to lose in [penalty shootouts] but they did this time in spectacular fashion”. Alexander Abnos described Algeria 3-3 Austria as “a completely strange fever dream”, with stoppage-time chaos upending expectations of a pre-arranged draw. Nick Ames, who attended Mexico 2-3 England at the Azteca, said the buildup “seemed to start as soon as the draw was made” and that it was “a high point for England that should cut through despite later disappointments”.
As the tournament begins, the question lingers: can either side match the drama of the season that preceded it? The best may be yet to come.
