Scottish soccer fans, known collectively as the Tartan Army, made a lasting impression on U.S. host cities during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, despite their early departure from the tournament.
Although the team's 3-0 loss to Brazil on June 27 kept them from advancing out of Group L, its fans delivered a W off the pitch for The Massachusetts Child, a charitable organization run by the Massachusetts Teachers Association that helps fund children's education.
As Scotland fans descended on Boston during the early round matches in Foxborough, Scotsman Mike Teevan turned to the First Student bus operator for help with the group's transportation after an earlier supplier fell through, which ended up saving them thousands of dollars, MTA said in a press release Monday.
Thanks to the unexpected windfall, Teevan and the Scottish fans decided to put the money back into the local community and donated $15,000 to The Massachusetts Child, or Mass Child, according to MTA.
"Some of the most enduring images and memories from the World Cup will be the Scotland fans traveling to Gillette Stadium on fleets of school buses, and it seems appropriate that it's local school kids who should benefit from the help we received," Teevan said in a statement.
Mass Child supports students who are experiencing financial hardship, according to the MTA website.
The Tartan Army donation will specifically be used by MTA affiliates in pre K-12 public schools to help students in need purchase essentials like clothing, school supplies, books and health items, MTA said.
"We were completely taken by surprise both by the fact that they reached out about a donation and then by the generous size of that donation," MTA president Max Page told ABC News on Wednesday.
Since Mass Child "operates entirely on donations," Page said that "a single $15,000 gift is rare, and in this case a first, coming from a group of soccer fans visiting from Scotland."
"The Tartan Army really made the World Cup's arrival to the Boston area quite special. It didn't matter how much of a fan of the games you were to enjoy the spirit of the Tartan Army," he added. "They were joyful, they were generous, and they set a great example for our students, showing them what it means to care for one another."
