The Boston Red Sox have spotted a chance to cash in on the Tartan Army’s takeover of the city, and they are leaning right into it.
Scotland fans have descended on Boston in their thousands for the World Cup, turning bars, restaurants and even Fenway Park into a sea of tartan. The Red Sox, never ones to miss a marketing moment, decided to capitalize.
The team put out an open invitation on social media this week, rolling out a giveaway designed to lure the visiting supporters back through the gates for their run of home games — with Scotland not in action again until the weekend.
Dave Portnoy takes aim at Red Sox over Scotland World Cup offer
Not everyone in Boston saw it as a simple act of goodwill. The most cynical take came from Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, a lifelong Boston sports fan.
Reacting to the post on X, Portnoy wrote: “Leave it to the Red Sox to try and trick the Scots to coming to another game. John Henry 101.”
The dig at John Henry, the Red Sox and Liverpool FC principal owner, is familiar ground for Portnoy, who rarely misses a chance to shade the team’s ownership. It’s a comment made in jest, though there is some truth to the Red Sox’s affinity for revenue-maximising.
There is one glaring flaw in the plan, though. A single free drink is unlikely to make much of a dent in the Tartan Army.
These are supporters who have already left a trail of empty kegs across the city. Boston bars revealed how much Scotland fans drank in Boston, with one venue admitting they had never seen anything like it.
One bar ran out of its flagship lager altogether, another tripled its St Patrick’s Day takings, and a third saw a fridge door break from being opened so often.
The Red Sox might be wise to budget for a second round.
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