FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) 鈥� Ever since Scotland fans learned they鈥檇 begin the country鈥檚 ninth appearance in Boston, plans were being made for a party.
鈥淚 knew there was going to be a tsunami of Tartan Army (Scotland fans),鈥� said Jason Waddleton, a Scotland native and owner of The Haven, a Scottish restaurant and bar in Boston鈥檚 Jamaica Plain neighborhood since 2010.
He was right.
First, agreed to temporarily extend bar and restaurant hours during the World Cup. Similar moves have been made in Kansas, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Washington.
Next came thousands of Scots 鈥� one estimate is as high as 50,000 鈥� descending on the Boston area, including nearby Providence, Rhode Island, which has become a home base for many of them over the past few weeks.
Then it was the Tartan Army following the country鈥檚 last week 鈥� taking over the city鈥檚 famed Fenway Park alongside Red Sox Nation after the team dubbed it 鈥淪cottish Heritage Celebration Night.鈥�
鈥淭hey know how to party, how to make friends and influence people,” Waddleton said.
While the majority of the revelry has been fueled by Scotland positioning itself to advance to the World Cup knockout round for the first time heading into Friday鈥檚 matchup with Morocco.
It鈥檚 all added to a celebratory atmosphere not typically seen in Boston except on St. Patrick鈥檚 Day or the Fourth of July.
Scots fill pubs in the Boston area, challenging beer reserves
Along with all the World Cup spirit, Scotland has not only contributed to New England鈥檚 economy, but what has been a constantly fluctuating supply of beer.
That is particularly true of Tennent鈥檚 Lager, Scotland鈥檚 top-selling brand. Once only available at The Haven, before the tournament started Tennent鈥檚 made deals and distributed kegs of its product to 80 bars in Boston and surrounding areas.
At The Haven, Waddleton said he鈥檚 gone from four kegs a week to ordering 50 just for this week.
鈥淲e鈥檝e basically blown through our own allocation. We still have it and we鈥檒l get more in on Monday,鈥� he said.
Samantha Crawford, the international marketing manager for Tennent鈥檚, said they started preparing to distribute their product to the U.S. as soon as Scotland qualified for the the World Cup in November. They’ve also sent supplies to Miami bars ahead of Scotland’s match against Brazil next week.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a long time in the making. The next day we got to work,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥� very part of culture and sports and culture (in Scotland). It鈥檚 iconic. It just goes hand in hand when the teams play.鈥�
Many area bars and restaurants have been caught by surprise
Mivan Spencer, owner of Caffe Dello Sport in Boston鈥檚 North End, said he is used to handling large crowds for major soccer tournaments, but has been surprised by the amount of business he鈥檚 seen during the World Cup.
鈥淎fter the first weekend of matches I definitely ran out of almost everything,鈥� Spencer said. 鈥淟uckily I have a couple other restaurants I borrowed product from to get me through.鈥�
The first thing he sold out of was Tennent鈥檚, before quickly selling out of Peroni.
Spencer said he鈥檚 since tripled his usual alcohol order for this week, saying it鈥檚 so 鈥淚 don鈥檛 run out of a single thing.鈥�
Over at High Street Place, a food hall in downtown Boston, beverage supplies that were expected to last a week were consumed in four days, said Lauren Johnson, a senior marketplace manager at the venue.
鈥淔ortunately, we have great partners, and our distributors were able to pivot quickly and increase subsequent orders to keep pace with demand seamlessly,鈥� she said.
Oran McGonagle, owner of the Dubliner, said their location near Boston’s fan zone has paid off.
鈥淲e were ready, we were stocked,” he said. “I think we鈥檙e still the only bar that has the Scottish beer left in the city right now, so we were well prepared.鈥�
Tapping in 鈥� and out 鈥� of iconic Boston beer Sam Adams
Sam Adams said its Boston taproom ran out of their famed Samuel Adams Boston Lager last weekend after Scottish fans descended on the city. From Thursday to Sunday, the Boston-based brewer said the Tartan Army drank four times as much Boston Lager as they typically sell during a four-day holiday stretch like the Fourth of July.
To date, Sam Adams has sold more than 4,000 pints of Boston Lager, resulting in about 90 empty kegs, said Devon Sage, a Sam Adams spokesperson.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had to schedule four 鈥榚mergency deliveries鈥� to the Taproom,鈥� Sage wrote in an email.
Soccer diplomacy comes to Massachusetts because of the World Cup
Politicians in Massachusetts have also joined in on the soccer craze.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has been a fixture at Boston鈥檚 fan festival and made appearances at several watch parties.
Gov. Healey declared June 18 鈥淲orld Cup Fans Appreciation Day鈥� and was spotted at The Haven behind the bar pouring drinks for patrons.
It brought a smile to Waddleton鈥檚 face, though he said the governor may need to work on her bartending skills a little.
鈥淢aura Healey needs to learn how to pour a pint before getting that Sunday shift she asked for,” Waddleton said. 鈥淏ut we can work on that.鈥�
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Associated Press writer Kimberlee Kruesi, and freelancers Ken Powtak and Caterina McGuigan contributed to this report.
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