Why Scotland are the only team at the World Cup without an official nickname

The odd ones out

In fact, Scotland are the only nation at this 48-team World Cup without a nickname, officially.

Now, there'll surely be one or two readers shouting at the screen "what about the Tartan Army?"

However, this a moniker is purely one for the supporters of Scotland, not its team.

This is highlighted on the official Wikipedia page of the the Scotland national team which specifies in brackets (supporters) next to the Tartan Army nickname.

Meanwhile, this topic has also been discussed on the subreddit r/Scottishfootball in which the user questioned why Scotland doesn't have its own nickname.

This little bit of trivia is made even more incredible when you remember Scotland were, along with England, the first two ever national football teams.

So, why doesn't Scotland have a nickname?

Well, one theory is that the team just outdates having a nickname because it is that old.

Back in 1870 when the first international match happened between England and Scotland, they were just simply known as that.

It wasn't until later that teams started to adopt official nicknames, with Belgium supposedly the first in 1906 with the Red Devils.

Scotland has had a few unofficial nicknames, such as the Bravehearts and the Dark Blues, but none have really stuck.

Other than that, there isn't really any actual reason for why Scotland don't have a nickname - that's just how it's always been.

So, with that in mind, maybe it's time to get your suggestions in!

Every World Cup nation's nickname