Scotland’s Euro 2024 place was secured on Sunday night by Norway’s defeat to Spain as Steve Clarke’s side continue to impress.
Having also reached the Covid-delayed Euro 2020 finals, Clarke has re-established Scotland’s men’s team on the international stage and here, the PA news agency looks at their major tournament record.
Back in the big time
Clarke said after Spain’s win in Oslo on Sunday: “To qualify for successive Euros after more than 20 years is phenomenal.”
Scotland reached four out of five major tournaments from the 1990 to 1998 World Cups. That included the 1992 and 1996 European Championships – their only appearances in the Euro finals prior to 2020.
They had been present at six World Cups out of seven to that point including five in a row from 1974, the only exception being 1994.
They have since missed six World Cups in a row, and the first five Euros of the new century before Clarke oversaw their resurgence.
Alongside their Euro qualifications they have been promoted twice from League C in the inaugural 2018-19 Nations League to the top tier for 2024-25.
The trip to Germany for Euro 2024 will also allow the Tartan Army to travel to a tournament in numbers, after Euro 2020 was played under Covid restrictions with two of Scotland’s games taking place at Hampden Park and the other at Wembley.
Best record in prospect
Clarke’s side are set for their best ever record in a qualifying campaign, for either a European Championship or World Cup.
Before losing 2-0 to Spain last Thursday, they won their first five games – scoring 12 goals and conceding only one, an Erling Haaland penalty in the 2-1 win over Norway.
Top spot is still to be decided between Scotland and Spain but next month’s games against Georgia and Norway are, relatively speaking, dead rubbers with Scotland already qualified.
One win would make it six out of eight games, a 75 per cent rate that would be Scotland’s best in a qualifying campaign – beating their seven wins out of 10 en route to both Euro 96 and then France 98.
Should they win both, it will be only the fifth time they have won seven or more games in qualifying with all the previous examples coming in campaigns of at least 10 games. They narrowly missed out on Euro 2008, with eight wins from 12 including a double over France, and last year’s World Cup when they won seven of 11 before losing a play-off semi-final to Ukraine.
Chance to break new ground
Having qualified, the next target will be to make it out of a major tournament group stage for the first time.
Scotland’s three previous trips to Euro finals have brought just two wins and two draws from nine games, their best return coming in 1996 when they beat Switzerland and drew with the Netherlands, who then eliminated them on goals scored only thanks to Patrick Kluivert’s consolation in a 4-1 defeat to England.
They have only four wins in 23 games at World Cup finals and have never won more than once at a single major tournament.
The expansion of the final tournament to 24 teams, introduced in 2016, increases the chances of making it through the group, with all six winners and runners-up joined by four third-placed teams in the last 16.
Four points has been enough to get through at both of the 24-team tournaments to date, with Northern Ireland and Portugal in 2016 and Denmark and Ukraine last time out advancing with three. Scotland propped up Group D on one point at Euro 2020.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here