FIFA World Cup Preview. According to RMC, Scotland has secured their ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and this team will prove in the US, Canada, and Mexico that their qualification was no accident.
The nearly 30-year wait is finally over. Scotland has qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1998, and will participate in this 48-team tournament. The team's journey to the United States, Canada, and Mexico will be closely watched by Scottish fans.
RMC Sport has compiled Scotland's achievements, squad, strengths, weaknesses, and players to watch.
Qualifying Performance
Scotland finished first in their European qualifying group with 13 points, ahead of Denmark (11 points), Greece (7 points), and Belarus (2 points). On November 18, 2025, Scotland defeated Denmark 4-2 at Hampden Park, completing their historic qualifying campaign. It was this victory in the final round that secured Scotland's top spot in the group and qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
"I wasn't there that night, but I watched videos of the atmosphere, and it was clearly Hampden Park's best moment in decades! We haven't had such a unifying night of celebration in a long time," said Andy Scott, AFP Football Coordinator and UK Ligue 1 commentator, on RMC's "After Foot" show. There were also spectacular goals that night, with McTominay scoring an overhead kick early on.
Since then, Scotland has won two of their four friendly matches in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup: a 4-1 thrashing of Curaçao and a 4-0 victory over Bolivia. The other two matches were narrow one-goal defeats to Japan and Ivory Coast.
Scotland's 2026 FIFA World Cup Squad Strengths
From an international perspective, Scotland's overall performance has not been ideal. The team has participated in 23 FIFA World Cup matches, securing only 4 victories, with their best performance being only the group stage. However, Andy Scott believes this could change in the upcoming FIFA World Cup. "We have some players who have been playing in top leagues for a long time, so it's a different level compared to 2010 or 2014. Scotland is a very defensive team, very committed to their work, and they fight hard. We don't have too many world-class talents, but two or three players are very outstanding."
Key players like McTominay (Napoli), Robertson (Liverpool), and McGinn (Aston Villa) can provide significant help to Steve Clarke's team.
Weaknesses
Scotland's problems are primarily reflected in the lack of sufficient talent across all lines, especially in key positions, leading to an unbalanced team structure.
"The problem is that we don't have a world-class goalkeeper, and we don't have a world-class striker. There's some quality in midfield and at full-back, but in the two areas that truly decide high-level matches—upfront and at the back—we lack the players we need," Scott said. Nevertheless, he still believes the team has a chance to compensate for the lack of core players through collective effort.
"Our performance in the qualifiers and our participation in Euro 2024 prove this. But for a small country like ours, if we want to take another step forward, we need players like Norway's Haaland, and we don't have that. Also, a big strength of our team is our running, but that might become harder in the heat of America."
Key Player: Scott McTominay
As Napoli's core player and the best player in Serie A for the 2024-2025 season, Scott McTominay will approach this FIFA World Cup as Scotland's true midfield leader. The 29-year-old midfielder has truly blossomed in Italy, scoring 10 goals and providing 3 assists in Serie A last season.
"McTominay has become the team's star player. He has grown into an important player since leaving Manchester United for Italy, scoring many goals. He can also score very spectacular goals," Andy Scott said, referring to McTominay's overhead kick against Denmark. This move left a deep impression on Scottish fans, and there is even a mural in Glasgow depicting this goal.
Prediction
Scotland has been drawn into Group C, alongside Brazil, Morocco, and Haiti. Facing the African champions and the Seleção, Scotland will face a tough test, with the latter two teams being frequent opponents in the FIFA World Cup.
"It won't be easy, but we have the ability to compete and won't be embarrassed," Scott said, expressing confidence that Scotland can go further than in recent FIFA World Cups. "With some luck, we could reach the Round of 16, and at least we should be able to get out of the group stage. The specific outcome will depend on our ranking in the group and the draw. But we must seize the opportunity to go further, at least break out of the group stage first."
If finishing third in the group also leads to qualification, Scotland indeed has a chance to advance beyond the first round in the FIFA World Cup. However, they must first comfortably defeat Haiti and then put in a respectable performance against Morocco and Brazil.