Even boutique hotels can feel like a prison in the wrong circumstances. For the hapless footballers of Scotland, the windows of the Grand Bohemian in downtown Charlotte may as well have been fitted with iron bars.
It was on Thursday afternoon that Steve Clarke’s side returned to their elegant, upmarket base, where the rooms ordinarily cost north of $300 a night.
Having been demolished 3-0 by Brazil in Miami on Wednesday, they have been largely incarcerated ever since, trapped in a form of sporting purgatory on this most dismal of trips to the World Cup.
And so they have lingered. And stewed. And watched as results have gone against them, powerless as their spot in FIFA’s nonsensical league for third-place teams has tumbled, unable to leave the United States but unsure if any purpose would come from staying.
They were predominantly alone, too, because around the time they were landing back in Charlotte, Daily Mail Sport understands many of the players’ wives, girlfriends and family members were checking out from accommodations elsewhere in the city.
It is believed several of that cohort had made the decision after the Brazil loss to fly back to the UK on Thursday evening rather than sharing the tortured formalities of the waiting game. It would be hard to blame them.
Scotland have spent the last few days in limbo as they wait to learn their World Cup fate
But Clarke, Scott McTominay, John McGinn, Andy Robertson and the remainder of Scotland’s blunderers had no such choice. They couldn’t get out of town, instead consigned to going through the motions in limboland. Or camp doom, if you prefer.
On Friday, that meant ruling against any further press conferences for the foreseeable future – probably wise – and undertaking a closed training session away from media at Atrium Health Performance Park, home to Charlotte FC. As a modern facility that sprawls across 52,000 square feet, it is top quality, same as the hotel, so there have been precious few excuses on this American misadventure, which hasn’t always been the case for Scotland.
Famously, they arrived at the 1978 World Cup in Argentina and found windowless rooms at their hotel and a swimming pool without any water; they could scrape together a couple of thin mitigations for losing to Peru.
That hasn’t been available as a reflex in 2026, nor can Clarke’s men point so much to the suffocation that can occur at tournaments.
The regular interactions with loved ones has served as an upgrade on their experience at the equally poor campaign at Euro 2024 in Germany. Having elected to stay at an Alpine resort town near the Austrian border two years ago, there was a mild sense of isolation within the squad, but here? No such disclaimers.
And maybe that is what has stung the most across the past 48 hours of waiting on results – the knowledge that the debacle of this campaign was of their own making.
Only putting one past Haiti? That was on them. Conceding within two minutes against Morocco? That was on Grant Hanley. Gifting three to Brazil could be divided between Scott McKenna, Andy Robertson, Angus Gunn, Nathan Patterson and Kenny McLean.
Overseeing it all was Clarke, a manager so negative in his approach and words that many of the fans in Miami came up with a new name: Jurassic Clarke. It is a fine thing to have a nice hotel and sheets with a high thread-count, but there isn’t a soft enough pillow in the world for all the regrets in that squad.
It is easy to blame FIFA for the purgatory – they created it with their new and bloated format. But in that scenario it is better to reserve sympathy for the supporters rather than those they came to follow.
Scotland fans could be heading home, with the team’s progress dependent on other results
The fans have been fleeced enough already without extending stays by up to three or four days on a whim. On Thursday, in Miami, Daily Mail Sport met one Glaswegian who had spent upwards of £15,000 so far and still refused to go home to his wife and two teenage sons – this was Scotland’s first World Cup since 1998 and he wasn’t ready to throw in the towel; many others had spent 10 grand or thereabouts, had a great time, and were ready to call it quits in advance of a final judgement.
But Clarke was fairly certain they would not survive the Brazil rout. He said as much in a series of grumpy interviews after the game that did his public standing no favours. It likely killed the mood within the Grand Bohemian, as well.
So picture the scene for that squad, watching in their spacious rooms as each result has gone against what they needed. Having lost to Brazil, they were ranked second among the nations chasing the eight spots reserved for third-placed finishers, and apparently had a 42.7 per cent chance of surviving.
How these figures are calculated remains one of the mysteries of the cosmos, but we’ve all heard them by now. As will the players. But between leaving the Hard Rock Stadium on Wednesday and arriving later that night at their Miami hotel, the Dalmar in Fort Lauderdale, their prognosis was already worse – South Africa surprised South Korea in Group A.
Scotland were now third of the eight and that 42.7 per cent was now 22.4.
The kicking that followed on Thursday was brutal. Needing four of the remaining nine groups to do them a favour, it only got worse.
As the Carolina rain beat against the windows of the Bohemian, Ecuador somehow beat Germany in Group E. That was meant to be a Scottish banker and instead they were down to fourth, the trapdoor getting closer. Their percentage? Nine per cent. Only eight groups were left to save them.
Steve Clarke’s men won one of their three group games, which may not be enough to qualify
The margin of the 3-0 defeat by Brazil threw their hopes of reaching the knockouts into doubt
But there was no salvation in Group F – Japan needed to beat Sweden by four or more and of course they didn’t. They drew and that took Scotland’s survival chance to 6.6 per cent. Again, imagine those players sat on their beds and thinking back to the imperative of keeping it tight against Brazil. Imagine those players hoping on a win for either side in Australia against Paraguay in Group D and getting the one outcome that would drop them further – a draw.
By Friday evening in the United States, Scotland were down to eighth in that silly table. By Saturday morning in the UK, the betting man would fancy them to be out.
Because how many miracles ever occur on the green mile? As Scotland’s players and manager sat in their gilded cells in Charlotte, they were left hoping for something desperately improbable.
And almost certainly pondering their own role in the creation of a such a desperately unsatisfying scenario.
