Slàinte!
The Scottish national team kicks off World Cup play in Boston Saturday, but their fans treated their transatlantic flights like a bottomless pub crawl — and drained every drop of booze before touching the tarmac.
The kilt-clad Scots entered Logan International Airport ready to rumble — “been drinking since one o’clock in the morning when I got up,” said David Wood as he arrived on US soil.
“We ran out of beer.”
A flight from the UK to the US usually lasts around seven hours, so when the beer ran dry, the Scots switched to wine, the pilot told WBZ-TV.
“We had a round of applause when we landed,” Wood added. “I don’t know if you do that here. That’s a very Scottish thing.”
“I’m going to find Cheers. That’s what I want do. I want to find Cheers, he told CBS, holding up a bottle of whiskey.
“I watched it when I was younger, and I want to find the bar.”
Ticket prices soared to around $1,200 when they first went on sale, according to Allan Begg, who plans to attend one of Scotland’s matches in the group stage.
“Now they aren’t selling and are down to $500,” he moaned.
“We got scammed — is what it is, but we are still smiling,” continued Carole McNamara seethed.
“We are going to the fan zones, and we got tickets to one of the pubs.”
Many tourists from Scotland have had trouble entering the US over visa issues — with their application status changed or rejected in the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).
US Customs and Border Patrol told WBZ-TV in a statement that “ESTAs are continuously vetted and travelers must be complete and truthful.” It added that “failure to disclose arrests or convictions constitutes misrepresentation and can lead to ESTA denial, revocation or a permanent bar from entering the United States.”
Meanwhile, the Tartan Army hasn’t made the World Cup in 28 years — and the dramatic drop in prices as well as entry issues soured its supporters.
Loads of people spent thousands of thousands of pounds and you can’t get that money back,” said McNamara.
“When you waited 28 years, it’s a kick in the teeth.”