How Scottish football has connected my Dundee family for almost a century
- Andrew Batchelor
- Jun 9
- 5 min read
Scotland returns to the World Cup this week, and hearing so many stories from supporters across the country has been wonderful.
For many people, the tournament brings back memories of famous goals, heartbreaking defeats and unforgettable matches.
For me, it has prompted me to revisit a family story that spans more than three decades and three generations.
Back in 1998, my Grandad, Andrew Brown, travelled to France to follow Scotland at the World Cup.
Looking through old photographs and reading memories from the trip recently has been a reminder that while football may have been the reason for travelling, it was the experiences, friendships and adventures along the way that made it so special.
One of the most iconic moments came in Paris before Scotland’s opening match against Brazil.
Like thousands upon thousands of Scotland supporters, my Grandad found himself walking down the Champs-Élysées in a sea of tartan and blue shirts.
One of the world’s most famous streets had been transformed by Scottish fans who had travelled from every corner of the country to support their national team on football’s biggest stage.
For years, that was simply a story our family had heard.
Then, only a few years ago, we made an incredible discovery.
While watching old STV coverage from the tournament, there he was.
Among the crowds of supporters making their way down the Champs-Élysées, the cameras had somehow captured my Grandad walking through Paris and enjoying one of the biggest moments of his life. Out of all the thousands of fans who made the journey to France, seeing him appear on screen decades later felt incredibly special.
It was more than just old television footage. It was like stepping back in time.
Suddenly, a story that had been passed down through family conversations became something we could actually see with our own eyes.
The excitement, the atmosphere and the sense of occasion all came rushing back through a few seconds of archive footage.
My mum was also there on the trip and later wrote down some of her memories.
The Scotland cap that started our family story
Yet football’s connection to our family stretches back much further than 1998.
Long before my Grandad travelled to France to support Scotland, another member of our family had already represented the nation.
My great-grandad, Andrew Brown, was one of Dundee’s best-known junior footballers during the 1930s. He played for the famous Lochee Harp side, earned a Scotland junior cap against Wales and later joined Brechin City.
His football career was interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War, when he served with the RAF in Italy.
Looking back today, it is hard not to wonder how far his career might have gone had those years not been taken away from him.
Football remained a huge part of the family long afterwards.
My Grandad was also a keen footballer, playing for Dundee Violet and Downfield.
The game was one of his greatest passions and when he passed away in 2010, his ashes were scattered on the Downfield pitch - a place that meant so much to him.
Both my great-grandad and Grandad shared a love of football that shaped so much of their lives.
Scotland’s return to the World Cup 28 years later has brought those memories back to the surface once again.
Looking back now, it feels fitting that a family connection with Scotland football stretches across so many generations.
From my great-grandad representing Scotland on the pitch, to my Grandad following Scotland across France in 1998, to my mum and dad travelling to Italy in 1990, and now to my brother and I attending matches at the 2026 World Cup in America, football has provided a thread that connects our family’s story across nearly a century.
It’s about the memories and the journey
It’s a reminder that supporting Scotland isn’t just about ninety minutes on a football pitch. It’s about the memories, journeys and traditions that are passed down from one generation to the next.
Reading them now, more than 25 years later, what stands out isn’t necessarily the football itself.
Instead, it’s the stories of long journeys, laughter with friends, meeting supporters from across Scotland and sharing an adventure together.
Those memories have lasted far longer than any result ever could.
One quote from my Grandad particularly stood out.
At the end of the trip, after two and a half weeks following Scotland around France, he apparently turned to my mum and said:
“I am happy I have done it but I will never go back to another World Cup.”
Looking back, it is a quote that makes me smile.
At the time, nobody could have known Scotland would endure such a long absence from football’s biggest tournament.
Following in their footsteps
Although Scotland’s wait for a World Cup return felt endless, our family’s football journey didn’t stop there.
In 2024, my mum, dad, brother and I travelled to Germany to follow Scotland during Euro 2024. Just like my Grandad and family had done in France 26 years earlier for the World Cup, we followed the national team across the country, experiencing the atmosphere, meeting supporters and creating memories that will stay with us forever.
The trip meant so much to my mum and dad because they wanted my brother and I to experience a little of what they had experienced in France in 1998. And in many ways, we did.
One moment in particular will always stay with me.
When we arrived in Cologne at the train station and saw thousands upon thousands of Scotland supporters filling the streets, it immediately brought to mind the stories and photographs from Paris in 1998.
The atmosphere was unbelievable. Looking around and seeing a sea of tartan stretching into the distance was one of those moments that makes the hairs stand up on the back of your neck.
For years I had heard stories about the Champs-Élysées and the incredible scenes created by Scotland supporters in France.
Then suddenly I was standing in the middle of something remarkably similar myself.
It wasn’t Paris.
It wasn’t 1998.
But for a few moments, it felt like our family had come full circle.
28 years later…
For years, it felt as though my Grandad’s prediction might accidentally come true.
Thankfully, it didn’t.
This year’s World Cup feels especially meaningful because the family tradition continues.
My mum and dad travelled to Italy for the 1990 World Cup.
My mum, dad, Auntie Lorraine and Grandad travelled to France for the 1998 World Cup.
Now, in 2026, a new generation is following in their footsteps.
My brother will be travelling to Boston and attending Scotland’s opening match against Haiti.
Meanwhile, I’ll be heading to Toronto, where I’ll be attending Ghana vs Panama during the tournament.
Different countries. Different tournaments. Different generations.
Yet the excitement remains exactly the same.
When I look at that old photograph of my Grandad in France and think about him walking down the Champs-Élysées surrounded by thousands of Scotland supporters, I don’t think he could ever have imagined that nearly 30 years later his grandsons would be travelling across North America during another World Cup nor would his story be told all these years later.
That’s what makes football so special.
The matches eventually become part of history, but the memories, traditions and stories stay with families for generations.
As Scotland returns to the World Cup this week, countless new memories will be created by supporters from Dundee and beyond.
For my family, it is another chapter in a story that began decades ago.
And thankfully, despite my Grandad’s prediction all those years ago, the journey is still continuing.
