The agony was etched across the faces of those in the Tartan Army who had watched Brazil run rings around their Scotland side on Wednesday night.
Supporters who have been a picture of jubilation and personified the carnival atmosphere at the World Cup suddenly looked ashen-faced and crestfallen after their beloved Scotland were downed 3-0.
The Scots’ progress in the tournament now hangs in the balance and they face a nervous wait to find out if they’ll make the knockouts as one of the best eight third-place teams.
Those in the Tartan Army looked in complete disbelief at the manner in which Scotland fell behind just seven minutes into the game.
Scott McKenna contrived to gift Vinicius Jr the opener after his pass out from the back was intercepted by Rayan.
A total of 4,200 miles separated those lucky enough to be inside Miami Stadium and the packed OVO Hydro fanzone in Glasgow but the expressions were similar.
The glum Tartan Army look dejected after watching Scotland lose against Brazil
Scotland supporters went from disbelief to despair over the course of the game
There was a stark contrast in the emotions of the Brazilian supporters in Miami
One fan covered his face in shock, another with a saltire hat stood with his jaw agape while a young boy nervously bit his nails.
That disbelief morphed to disgust on the stroke of half-time when Vinicius Jr converted a deep cross at the back post.
Brazilian fans inside the home of the Miami Dolphins danced in their colourful bright yellow section of the ground.
Suddenly the negative goal difference was playing on the mind of Scotland fans, who knew full well that a hammering would likely bring the curtain down on their tournament.
When Matheus Cunha of Man United slotted home the third to make it 3-0, the mood among the Tartan Army plummeted even lower.
Among those in the crowd of Tartan Army fans was Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland’s wife, Nicole.
She was pictured holding their daughter in her arms, who had donned a Scotland shirt with ‘Daddy’ on the back for the occasion but it was ultimately an unhappy watch for them.
Scotland almost stole a goal back through Scott McTominay right at the death but Alisson kept his clean sheet and the three-goal victory intact.
In total, around 50,000 Scotland supporters descended on the US for their first World Cup berth in 28 years.
The Tartan Army made Boston their base for the opening two group games against Haiti and Morocco, winning widespread praise for their good humour during their visit.
Their antics in Massachusetts went viral around the world – from drinking the city’s bars dry of Tennent’s lager to placing traffic cones on the heads of statues and even doing spontaneous street singalongs with fans from rival nations.
Scotland must wait to see whether their three points will be enough to see them through
Brazil were by far the superior team in a game they could have won by a wider margin
Scotland fans are pictured watching the game in Mickey Byrne’s Pub in Miami
Boston’s police officers joined in the fun too, filming themselves doing keepy-uppies in the FIFA Fan Zone and attempting to play the bagpipes.
Earlier in the day a WPLG Miami’s Kacy Hintz was reporting from Marlins’ IoanDepot Park when her segment went off script with buoyant football fans attempting to grab her microphone to speak to viewers watching at home.
‘We love Miami,’ one rowdy member of the Tartan Army told Hintz before belligerently adding: ‘Come to f***ing Scotland!’
Hintz was assigned to cover the festivities outside the ballpark, where kilted, shirtless Scotsmen were seen pounding beers and singing the succinct refrain: ‘No Scotland, no party!’
‘A lot of them don’t even have tickets to go home,’ Hintz said while somehow managing the surrounding chaos.
And while alcohol has fueled the Tartan Army’s US invasion, a few of the group’s members made sure to point out that the group isn’t in the country to start trouble.
‘No arrests, zero arrests, just fun,’ one fan told Hintz.
The Florida authorities have been more strict than those up in Boston.
A video circulating on social media showed a Scotland supporter attempting to place a traffic cone on top of a statue in downtown Miami, only to be swiftly met with a very different reception to the one his compatriots enjoyed in Massachusetts last week.
Those inside the 4TheFans Fan Park in Edinburgh were dimilarly downcast
This Scotland fan appeared to be enjoying rubbing shoulders with Brazil fans
The fan, dressed in a Scotland strip, successfully crowned the figure of Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon with the cone – before immediate loud beeping from a nearby police car brought the moment to an end. He swiftly removed the cone.
The woman who was filming the video – and evidently travelling with the man – suggested that Miami police still have time to save their relationship with the Scots.
She said: ‘We’re a wee bit away from the Miami police loving the Scots. I’ll be honest, I s*** myself a wee bit there when that siren went off and we put the cone back.
‘They need to lighten up a wee bit but there’s still time for them!’, she added.
The cone-on-statue tradition is a beloved piece of Scottish cultural heritage.
Glaswegians have been placing traffic cones atop the Duke of Wellington statue outside the Gallery of Modern Art for decades, a custom believed to have begun with late-night revellers in the 1980s.
However, Miami locals seem to be loving the Tartan Army’s presence.
Another video which went viral showed a contingent of Scotland fans partying at a Miami hotel pool. They’d even brought the bagpipes with them.
The viral clip showed one Tartan Army member standing poolside, playing a tune while the rest of them bounced around and chanted away.
The Scottish fans have been a massive hit with the locals in the US but now face a nervous wait to see if their party will rage on – or if defeat by Brazil will pull the plug on it.
