No, Scotland Fans Don't Owe England Their Support

So England are out of another World Cup. That sucks for the English fans, but it puts and and to the repeated fealty test that Scotland fans are expected to pass whenever England is the only team left in any tournament – at least for another two years anyway.

Football blogger Andy Muirhead wrote about this weird phenomenon this week. I think it would be a useful read for England fans who might be disappointed that so many of their friends in the north didn't lend them support.

Let’s deal with the central fallacy first. Supporting England is not a moral obligation. It is not a test of decency, nor a litmus test for tolerance, nor some grand statement about the health of the Union. It is football. And in football, rivalry is not just tolerated - it is the point.

What these politicians fundamentally misunderstand or choose to ignore is that football rivalry in Scotland is not some shallow, performative pantomime that can be switched off when it becomes politically inconvenient. It is deep-rooted, generational, and culturally embedded.

England's exit means this daft ritual will be shelved, but not scrapped. Next time England do well in a tournamant, Scotland fans will be asked to pass this test again; and by the media and politician's standards, we'll fail.

But this rivalry has never and will never need the permission of politicians or right wing press. Scotland fans owe your team nothing more than France fans owe them. But we will be here for you when you're ready to drown your tears.