The Tartan Army has swarmed South Florida, but it is unlikely the three-county area will run out of beer.
The diehard legions of fans following Scotland’s national team, which is challenging global fútbol power Brazil for the top spot in their FIFA World Cup 2026 group, have made their way through much of Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Broward counties this week.
Led by their bagpipe ensemble, Scotland’s have marched through Miami’s Little Havana district and attended a Miami Marlins Major League Baseball game.
Buy World Cup tickets on Stub Hub
But, so far, there are no reports of local bars running dry on beer, or other brews. Why is that a thing? Here are five things to know.
Read on.
While in Boston, Tartan Army said to have drained beer taps
Ahead of their South Florida game on June 24, the Tartan Army trekked through Boston, where Scotland played its first two Group C matches against Haiti and Morocco, in that order. The Scots won their first contest, and lost their second.
While there, the Tartan Army reportedly drank so much beer that Boston bars were running dangerously low. It’s been said the Scots drank the equivalent each day of what the city, known in part because of its Irish enclaves, experiences on St. Patrick’s Day each March.
That’s saying something given the city’s rep as a beer hall, including the Sam Adams Brewery.
Non-official beer brand steps in to cash in on Tartan Army’s presence
The official U.S. beer sponsor of the FIFA World Cup is Michelob ULTRA, which is brewed by Anheuser-Busch, with Stella Artois as the craft/import beer.
But rival brewer Molson Coors Beverage Company, which produces Miller Lite, on June 23 shipped a “tartan-covered beer barge” to Miami “to welcome one of soccer’s most legendary fan bases” ahead of the Scotland’s final group stage match.
“And because every great beer barge needs an escort, a Miller Lite-branded pontoon boat will be towing it through Miami waters,” the company’s statement noted.
FIFA exerts control on branding signage at its World Cup events
Soccer’s global governing body, FIFA, which organizes and hosts the quadrennial fútbol tournament, does not comment on advertising or commercial activations by non-official brands at its events.
But FIFA does exert pretty tight control over branding at its official sites throughout the World Cup.
For example, even though the South Florida games are played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, the facility is known as “Miami Stadium,” because Hard Rock is not a World Cup sponsor. The Hard Rock signage at the stadium has been covered, too.
Scots might prefer their Tennents Lager
The top-selling brew in Scotland’s pubs and markets is Tennents Lager. Known as “the Big Juicy,” lists 4% alcohol by volume. There are a couple other notable brews including Belhaven Best, BrewDog Punk IPA and Innis & Gunn Original.
Oh … yeah … there is a big game for Scotland today
Brew rivalries aside, the Tartan Army is in town for serious soccer business.
Scotland faces Brazil in their group stage’s final game at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24.
Scotland is in third place in Group C with 3 point. However, it trails the South American power and Morocco by just 1 point as the leaders each have 4 points. A win would propel Scotland into the knock-out rounds and prolong the Tartan’s Army’s stay in North America.
A loss would eliminate the Scots. A tie could extend Scotland’s World Cup tenure depending on how results for 8 other teams ahead of the Scots at the moment.
Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miller Lite woos Scotland Tartan Army ahead of Brazil World Cup game
Reporting by Antonio Fins, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Antonio Fins, Palm Beach Post | USA TODAY Network
