MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Scottish soccer superfans known as the Tartan Army might want to come up with a few new rousing chants to support the likes of Iraq, Egypt, Uzbekistan and Spain. Maybe a few other teams, too.
Scotland is going to need some help.
The games might be done for Scotland at this World Cup, except for one — the waiting game. Scotland finished third in Group C, not good enough to automatically advance but potentially good enough to grab one of the eight spots in the Round of 32 that are allocated to top third-place teams.
“It’s a waiting game, unfortunately,” Scotland midfielder Kenny McLean said. “Maybe results will go our way.”
Each of the 48 teams at this World Cup were assigned to a group of four. The teams finishing first and second in those groups automatically move into the knockout stage, so with 12 groups, that takes up 24 spots on a 32-team bracket.
The teams that finished last in each of the 12 groups, they’ll be eliminated.
That leaves 12 third-place finishers for the eight remaining spots. A total of four standings points will almost certainly be enough to advance; three would get it done for many teams as well. Ties within the third-place teams, with no head-to-head tiebreaker possible because they’re all in different groups, will be settled by goal difference, goals scored, FIFA’s “fair play” ranking and FIFA’s world ranking, if necessary.
Bosnia and Herzegovina — which finished third in Group B with four points after one win, one loss and one tie — will be one of those qualifying teams. South Korea, the third-place team from Group A after a win and two losses (with a minus-1 goal differential), is almost certain to be headed into the Round of 32 as well.
But plenty of teams, including Scotland (3 points, with a minus-3 goal differential), will have no choice other than to sit around and wait for results that will decide their fate. If Iraq, Egypt, Uzbekistan and Spain all win their final matches in group play, the Scots would probably advance. There are other paths, too. There are also countless ways for them to miss out.
“We made mistakes, but that happens in football,” Scotland defender Nathan Patterson said. “And now we just have to hope things go our way.”
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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here.
Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
