World Cup Organisers Enhance Queuing for Scotland vs Morocco
World Cup organisers have announced improvements to crowd control and queuing procedures for Scotland's upcoming match against Morocco following lengthy waits experienced by fans last weekend.
The Tartan Army raised concerns about the queuing system at Boston Stadium after thousands of supporters were delayed waiting for trains and to pass through security gates.
Some fans reported to the BBC that there was a risk of a crush outside the stadium during Saturday's Scotland versus Haiti fixture, with barriers being toppled by the dense crowd.
Fifa acknowledged that queues at the 64,000-seat venue were "longer than optimal" but stated that adjustments had been implemented after monitoring crowd movement patterns.
BBC Scotland News understands that Police Scotland, which has four liaison officers assigned to fans in the US, provided feedback to event organisers following the match.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) indicated that lessons had been learned, with improvements made to signage and routing for fans travelling by rail.
Nearly 20,000 passengers purchased train tickets last week, though many complained about long queues at stations and the absence of air conditioning on crowded trains.
Boston 26, Fifa's host committee in the city, confirmed that a "number of minor adjustments" had been made to enhance crowd flow around Boston Stadium.
"As is common at major international sporting events, operational procedures are continually adjusted throughout a tournament.
While a small number of supporters experienced wait times that were longer than optimal, the stadium was at capacity by kick-off, with the vast majority of supporters in their seats for the start of the match."
They added that these measures were implemented in time for Wednesday's Norway versus Iraq match at the same stadium, which experienced a "smooth entry operation."
Unprecedented Number of Riders at Boston Stadium
Boston Stadium, rebranded from Gillette Stadium for the World Cup, is located in Foxborough, approximately 30 miles from central Boston.
Typically home to the New England Patriots NFL team, the venue has a 20,000-space car park used by US fans who usually drive to matches.
However, for the World Cup, parking has been reduced to 5,000 spaces, with new fan zones established outside the stadium.
Visitors have been encouraged to use special trains and buses to attend matches.
On Saturday, fans reported waits of up to two hours to board trains back to Boston after the match, with the last service arriving in the city around 02:30.
An MBTA spokesperson stated they had transported "an unprecedented number of riders" to and from the stadium.
"We, and our partners, are continually incorporating lessons learned into preparations for upcoming matches,"
"We always appreciate the feedback received from ridership and fans."
Fans attending the Norway versus Iraq match on Wednesday experienced shorter queues, though the number of passengers was significantly lower.
MBTA carried 10,700 fans on Wednesday, approximately 9,000 fewer than for the Scotland versus Haiti match.
The earlier kick-off time also resulted in many attendees remaining at Boston Stadium's fan zone to watch a later match on screen, thereby avoiding large queues for return trains.
However, MBTA advised that over 16,000 train tickets have already been sold for the Scotland versus Morocco match, with another sell-out anticipated.
Police Scotland's Role and Fan Feedback
Police Scotland stated that their officers' role at the tournament is "to act as a liaison for travelling fans" and to support event organisers with safety advice.
Earlier this week, several fans contacted regarding long waits to enter the stadium despite arriving hours before kick-off.
They described slow "airport style" security checks before the full-capacity crowd was funneled through three gates.
Alan McCloskey from West Lothian commented on the situation:
"Plenty of stewards, but no idea how to deal with a big football crowd. Lucky no one took ill or got crushed."
Alison Stewart described her train journey as "absolutely suffocating" without air conditioning during a heatwave in Boston.
"We saw one older man being helped by the police, he was absolutely grey,"
"They clearly have no idea how to deal with large crowds requiring public transport, and it's a credit to the Scotland fans that things stayed good-natured."
Fans Describe Difficult Experiences
Ross Herbert, 49, described the event as his "worst experience" at a football match.
"The queue was beginning to get unsafe when someone in authority obviously made the decision to forget about security checks and just let us all through."
Callum Brown, 32, called the queues for trains back to Boston "shocking."
"Almost two-and-a-half hours queuing up and down, and up and down again, through railings. It was hot, cramped, no water in sight.
Really brought everyone down when we should have been celebrating."
Despite these issues, the match itself, which saw Scotland defeat Haiti 1-0, kicked off on time and proceeded without major incident.
Scotland's match against Morocco is scheduled for Friday at 18:00 ET (23:00 BST).
Related articles:
- World Cup 2026: Scotland top their group after beating Haiti in 'must-win game'
- What does 1-0 win mean for Scotland's chances of qualification?
- Why Haiti v Scotland was antidote to the ills of world football
- McGinn 'beaming with pride' - and hopes kids around Scotland are too
