Jay suggested I post in this forum so here goes.

Hubby and I were just in England and Scotland for the month of May, and yes, we were there for all 3
championship games, as well as a league ending game in Derby. That game was significant because it was the last game to be played in Derby, as the team has moved to a new city.

First was Derby playing another team in Derby. I had the "honour" of getting lost in downtown Derby just as the match was getting out, and of course the stadium is downtown. Even though Derby lost, the beer had taken it's toll, and everyone had a good time. There were some bottles thrown, but not at us, just at the fans from the other team.

Second was Glasgow Rangers vs someone (brain fart). We were in Dumfries for that one. Dumfries is in the South West of Scotland, and is only about 60 miles from Glasgow. Well, the game didn't start until 7PM, but the pubs opened at 8AM. Needless to say, things were a little crazy by game time. Almost every small town and city in Scotland has streets closed to vehicles in their downtowns, so it was natural that the soccer fans would concentrate there. It also didn't hurt that there were a lot of pubs on that street as well.

We went into the 1 pub that was still advertising food, and I made the mistake of asking what local beer would be good. When they found out we were Canadian, the tables on both sides of us proceeded to give us a lesson on "true football", and why the Rangers walked on water.

As I posted in another forum, the men's washrooms have troughs. Whenever there's a break, there's a mad rush, with drunken fans pushing in, some lifting kilts, some just saying the hell with it an taking them off, grabbing butt so it stops someone in mid pee. I was expecting a bigger problem, but since we weren't in Glasgow, it was just good natured fun.

Fun night.

The next game was Manchester vs Chelsea played in Moscow. We were in Glasgow, and surprisingly, people behaved themselves. Due to the riots in Manchester, which got HUGE coverage in Scotland, there was a very large police prescence.

Fourth game was the Scottish Cup, which had Queen of the South vs the Glasgow Rangers. We were back in Dumfries for that one, and all I can say is that even though it was a week day, I don't think anyone went to work. Again, they opened the pubs at 8AM for that one, and by mid afternoon, the whole town was under the influence. Wisely we didn't drive into downtown Dumfries but walked, as it was only about 1 km. Every bar and pub was packed, and most had at least 1 tv screen outside for the smokers. We gave up and went back to our B&B at about 9PM, when it became very apparent that we weren't going to get in anywhere.
Surprisingly (NOT!) when we left the next morning, the town was very, very quiet. Even our host looked hung over as he served us our "full English breakfast". hee hee.

I think people here in Canada and the US have no concept of just how football (soccer) crazy people are over there. When Man Utd played Chelsea in Moscow, I think the whole country shut down. If you combined the Superbowl, Stanley Cup, World Series into 1, you would not even get close to the passion.

And trust me, scottish men look VERY VERY good in kilts.