Calls for Tartan Army to boycott World Cup being held in America amid Trump Greenland threats

This summer, Scotland will be back on the biggest stage in sport when they appear at a World Cup for the first time since 1998.

The national team booked their place at the tournament being held across North America with a dramatic 4-2 win over Denmark.

That result was followed by scenes of celebration across the country as everyone began to look forward to summer with excitement.

The Tartan Army anthem of ‘We’ll be coming’ could be heard ringing out from pubs and clubs into the early hours of the next morning, but that statement might now be in doubt as some call for a Scottish boycott.

Steve Clarke’s men have been drawn against Haiti, Morocco and Brazil in the group stage draw, with all three games to be played in the USA.

However, with all eyes now on the States, some have been dismayed by the White House administration’s actions in recent months.

In particular, threats from President Donald Trump over potentially invading Greenland seem to have been the final straw for some who are now calling for Scotland to boycott the tournament.

The SNP’s Westminster leader has suggested that responding “in kind” to Donald Trump’s tariff threats would be a better way forward than boycotting the World Cup.

Stephen Flynn said the football tournament seems “somewhat small fry” in the face of the current “extremely serious” global situation with the US president’s threats over Greenland and tariffs.

He said: “There’s maybe a thought process among some that that’s something that Donald Trump’s going to be interested in, but I would simply say to them that when the president’s seeking to impose tariffs upon European nations, including of course Britain itself, the strength of response is more likely to be acknowledged if we respond in kind.

“That’s something which the European Union is, of course, looking at in great detail.

“I think we should be looking to work with our European allies in that context. This is an extremely serious situation, and a World Cup feels somewhat small fry in that context.”

Flynn told the BBC: “This is a deeply serious time, and of course all of us are concerned about the impact that the president’s actions are going to have upon European security, upon the ability for us to deal with the threats that we face.

“I’m pretty certain that most of your listeners would consider a boycott of the World Cup to be quite low down their priority list in terms of how you respond to the President.

“Without being flippant, we have boycotted the World Cup proactively since 1998, and I’m not entirely sure that’s a route that we want to go down again.”

Former Livingston MP Hannah Kennedy-Bardell told Scotland Tonight that “radical action” had to be considered.

She said: “We have to think about what other tools do we have in our armoury?” she said.

“What’s our approach going to be? I think we need to think about radical action.”

She said this could “potentially” involve boycotting the competition.

Andy Smith from the Scottish Football Union (SFU) said it was a “deeply worrying” situation for fans.

Speaking on the BBC’s Radio Scotland Breakfast programme, he said he was angry that football’s governing body Fifa had been “very, very quick in inventing a peace prize” for Trump.

He said the SFU was calling on the Scottish Football Association (SFA) to put pressure on Fifa to come up with a “plan B”.

Smith added: “One of my kids is £5,000 into commitments to go to the World Cup, lots of other Tartan Army members are the same.

“Do I deep down want to go there? Well, not if they are being aggressive.”

Donald Trump confirmed last week that he intended to acquire Greenland and was prepared to impose a 10% tariff on any country that opposed the plan.

Conservative MP Simon Hoare and Labour MP Kate Osborne were the first elected members to call for a home nation boycott of the tournament.