Scotland side tastes World Cup success just days before Haiti triumph
- Rory Cassidy
- Jun 15
- 3 min read
Steve Clarke's side are not the only Scottish men to taste World Cup success this month - with Scotland finishing 5th in the FootGolf equivalent.
Just days before John McGinn's goal sealed Scotland's first men's football World Cup win in 36 years, the Scottish men's team topped their group.
The 2026 FootGolf World Championship began earlier this month and saw Scotland drawn in the so-called 'group of death' - what many believed was the hardest group in the tournament.
As well as former World Champions America and Euro 2024 finalists Spain, Scotland had to compete against South American heavyweights Uruguay.
The team of 15 men - made up of players from Fife, Glasgow, Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Inverclyde, North and South Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, Ayrshire, and West Lothian - battled through searing heat in Acapulco, Mexico.
A clean sweep in the group - following wins against Spain, Uruguay and the USA - left the Scottish side ranked 5th out of the 16 teams through to the knockouts, setting up a Last 16 tie against Turkey.
A win against the Turks in the competition, which saw players playing a mixture of singles and pairs matchplays, resulted in a Quarter Final clash against Italy.
The Italians triumphed in the match, before being eliminated by tournament winners France, leaving Scotland facing a 5th and 6th place playoff against England.
Temperatures were above 30 degrees celsius for the first four matches, but had a 'feels like' temperature of over 40 degrees due to the humidity and lack of wind.
FIFG - the world governing body for FootGolf - had warned players of the "extreme heat wave currently affecting Acapulco" during the tournament.
A round of FootGolf can last more than six hours, and the heat resulted in several players having to withdraw from the individual tournament.
Many also required medical treatment and some even had to be taken to hospital by ambulance.
But the England match took place during a rainstorm following a months-long drought in the area, and a win against the Auld Enemy saw Scotland finishing the tournament in 5th position.
Scotland captain David "Geo" Stewart, of Renfrew, said: "It was an unbelievable start from the team to get the wins we had in our group games.
"Every single player stepped up when needed and put in a great performance.
"It was a big opportunity for the team to push on and continue the great run of form.
"We made history by being the first Scottish team to get out of the group and the boys were all absolutely brilliant.
"It's special and it's a special feeling, it's a great achievement for everyone involved.
"When we arrived in Mexico there was a lot of pressure on us in terms of the group draw and what we could achieve as a team.
"We showed great passion, determination and fight, and that's what's got us through.
"We took it one game at a time and we had good momentum but our World Cup dream came to an end at the hands of an outstanding Italian side.
"We knew going into that game it was going to be our biggest challenge yet and at the end of the day the better team won.
"It's been an absolute privilege to captain this amazing team of Scotland players and is something I'll never forget.
"We can be very proud of what we've achieved here as a country.
"It was a great achievement for the team and an honour to captain the country to a top finish.
"Every player performed well and supported each other throughout the tournament.
"We showed we can compete against the best at the highest level.
"We can only build from here and use it as fuel and I'm sure we'll go far in future tournaments if we keep going the way we have been."
The side failed to progress to the group stages at both the last World Cup and European Championships.
They lost out on hole difference, the FootGolf equivalent of goal difference, at the 2023 World Cup in Orlando, Florida, and 2024 Euros in Turkey.
Comments