£10k to follow Scotland in USA World Cup? I’m off to Benidorm - Steve Cardownie
Like many others I suspect, I was carried away on a wave of euphoria and, after discussing it with some friends, started planning my trip to North America for The World Cup.
Although I have watched Scotland play at Hampden on innumerable occasions I have only ever watched them playing abroad once and that was in Lithuania.
My first trip to Hampden, though, was in 1966 as one of a crowd of 123,052 to watch Scotland v England and, although the score was 4-3 to England, I knew then that I would be making many more sojourns through to Glasgow to cheer on the team.
Indeed, my next two visits the same year were to see the games against Brazil (when I saw Pele) and Portugal (when I saw Eusebio) and which I never tire of telling people.
Now back to the USA. It is safe to say that after that initial euphoria wore off, a sense of reality began to set in once we looked at the cost. Research tells me that a budget of around £10,000 would be required if I was to have a comfortable trip.
First, tickets to the games against Haiti, Morocco and Brazil range from £495.50 to over £1342 and tickets for the final range from £3119 to £6469, which even the most optimistic Scotland fan need not overly concern themselves with.
Scotland will play against Haiti and Morocco in Boston followed by Brazil in Miami, so some internal travel costs will be incurred, with the notable exception of potential hitchhikers.
Flights across The Pond will range between £650 and £1000 with anticipated accommodation costs of around £80 to £250 per night (park benches are for free.)
Then we have food and drink to consider, a daily allowance of £5 for food and £50 for a wee beverage or two should cover it (only joking-more like £80!)
Advice Direct Scotland has issued a warning that fans should avoid “World Cup Fever” and not fund the trip with high-interest credit cards, helpfully adding that “debt stress lasts longer than memories.”
Although my aforementioned trip to Lithuania was memorable, that was more to do with the city of Vilnius (where I stayed) rather than the game itself, which was played in Kaunas, and which was forgotten about the minute I departed the stadium for the nearest pub. Enough said.
Having just seen the Scotland squad for our two upcoming friendlies against Japan and The Ivory Coast (what does Craig Halkett have to do to get a game?) I don’t hold out much hope for significant progression in the States.
So, taking everything into account, I have reached the conclusion that a trip to the US of A is out of the question, although tens of thousands of Scots will undoubtedly reach the opposite conclusion and will soon be walking the streets of Boston and Miami.
As an alternative I am currently scoping out a potential trip to Benidorm to take in the World Cup from there. Sunshine, cheap flights, reasonable accommodation costs, live music, great food at modest prices in the Old Town and wall-to-wall drinks promotions have all contributed to my thought process.
Whether or not I will be upright by the time the games kick off is debatable - but I will give it my best shot.