Scotland fans, also known as the Tartan Army, have spent this month doing some serious damage to Boston’s beer supply. And their World Cup celebrations just picked up another gear as two New England Patriots legends, Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski, joined them.
Edelman and Gronkowski threw on Scottish kilts and paraded through Boston Common and the Public Garden alongside the Tartan Army.
The scene played out hours before Scotland took the field in Foxborough on Friday evening against Morocco.
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Edelman and Gronkowski both work as NFL analysts on Fox, the same network broadcasting this year’s World Cup. Bringing the two fan favorites back to Boston for coverage made perfect sense.
Then, their venture with the Tartan Army turned into one of the more memorable moments of World Cup week in New England.
The former Patriots stars took time to chat with the Scottish fans. They also posed for pictures with scores of them along the way.
At one point, they watched two Tartan Army members climb up and plant a bright orange traffic cone on top of the George Washington statue. The move has become something of a trademark for the energetic fan base.
Edelman said the whole spectacle gave them a serious case of FOMO.
“So we have a little surprise,” Edelman said on their Fox Sports coverage. “We wanted to join the fun.”
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Neither Edelman nor Gronkowski is a stranger to a party atmosphere in Boston and Foxborough. The pair won three Super Bowls during their time with the Patriots, and each championship came with a massive parade through the city afterward.
They even drew comparisons between this week’s World Cup festivities and the celebration that followed Super Bowl XLIX, their first title together.
“We heard that they drank Boston under the table,” Edelman said.
Gronkowski chimed in right after with his own take.
“This is the second time in 12 years that the city of Boston has been drank dry,” Gronkowski added.
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However, Scotland came up just short against Morocco, falling 1-0 thanks to a goal from Ismael Saibari. But the result barely mattered to the thousands of fans who turned Boston into a giant celebration anyway.
Fans sang and danced at Fenway Park, home of the Red Sox, while others broke out the bagpipes in the suburbs outside Boston. Locals couldn’t get enough of it, and the city embraced every bit of the chaos.
Fan Fest on City Hall Plaza gave supporters who couldn’t make it to Foxborough a chance to watch the match together. The event turned into a massive hit, drawing an estimated crowd of 15,000 fans.
Boston’s bars simply couldn’t keep pace with the demand. Several spots ran dry on some or all of their draft beer selections thanks to the thirsty Scots working their way through the city.
Even Rob Gronkowski couldn’t help but enjoy the spectacle unfolding around him.
“Congratulations to the Scotland army, the Tartan Army; they are absolutely fabulous,” he added on Fox Sports. “They are sloppy, but a respected sloppy fanbase; they’re great people.”
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Scotland now sits third in Group C with three points, trailing both Brazil and Morocco by a single point. Their next test comes against Brazil on Wednesday, June 24, and the Tartan Army will be looking for a response.
Don’t be surprised if Edelman and Gronkowski show up again to celebrate alongside them.
