World Cup
Scotland World Cup 2026 Qualification & Odds
Scotland’s memorable night at Hampden Park on Tuesday evening secured their qualification for the World Cup.
They will be on the plane to the USA, Mexica and Canada next year, marking their first qualification for the competition since 1998.
Let’s look at how they got there and their chances at the tournament.
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Road to Qualification
Steve Clarke’s men topped their Group C qualification league, overcoming Denmark, Greece and Belarus in the process.
They began their campaign with a 0-0 draw away to main rivals Denmark before three consecutive wins against Belarus and Greece.
Entering the third and final round of qualification games, they found themselves sitting in second place behind Denmark, who had a far greater goal difference than the Scots courtesy of 6-0 and 3-0 victories over Belarus and Greece.
With an away game against Greece and a Hampden Park fixture against Denmark to decide their fate, the Scottish hopes of automatic qualification looked dashed after a 3-2 loss to Greece on Saturday evening, handing Denmark the advantage as they faced Belarus at home.
The Danes couldn’t convert however, drawing 2-2 with Belarus, who until then had managed to gain just one point in qualification.
That set it up for a classic at Hampden Park, with Denmark just needing a draw to secure their place at the World Cup, while Scotland had to take all three points to advance.
It didn’t take long for the drama to start as Scott McTominay opened the scoring after three minutes with an outstanding overhead kick, seeing Scotland sit provisionally top of Group C.
Denmark hit back with an equaliser as Rasmus Hojlund converted from the spot in the 57th minute, but soon went down to 10 men as Rasmus Kristensen saw red for a second yellow.
With the atmosphere building, Lawrence Shankland was the man to put them, tapping in from point-blank range in the 78th minute. With Denmark a man down, Scotland just needed to hold onto their lead to secure their place.
The drama didn’t end there though, as Patrick Dorgu’s equaliser quickly sapped the energy out of the home team and left them fighting to take the lead again.
Steve Clarke’s side needed someone to step up and it was Kieran Tierney who did so, curling home an excellent effort from outside the area in the 93rd minute to put them in the lead.
As Denmark chased the equaliser, Kenny McLean found himself on the halfway line with Dane keeper Kaspar Schmeichel off his line, lobbing the Celtic goalkeeper from 45 yards to send Scotland to their first World Cup in 1998.
World Cup chances
With Scotland winning their qualification group, they will be at the World Cup in 2026, which they are currently 150/1 to win.
There’s no doubt that they have plenty to find with several of the world’s elite international teams, but what they don’t have, they make up in heart and determination, evidenced by their qualifying campaign.
They’ll have to lean on key players such as the reinvented Scott McTominay, who has looked like one of the world’s best since he left Manchester United for Napoli and the experienced Andy Robertson who has performed at the top level for years at Liverpool.
They’ll need to be at their best, but there’s no reason they can’t cause a shakeup in the USA come 2026.
