Scotland fan on Fifa award shortlist for Munich trek

Craig Ferguson has been shortlisted for the fan of the year award at Fifa's The Best ceremony

A Scotland fan who trekked more than a thousand miles from Glasgow to Germany to support the national side at the Euros in aid of a mental health charity has been shortlisted for a Fifa award.

Craig Ferguson walked from Hampden to Munich in time for the tournament opener against the host nation on 14 June in a specially-made kilt.

The 21-year-old, from Paisley, crossed through six countries on the 1,017 mile journey and raised more than £78,000 for the Brothers in Arms charity.

He has now been shortlisted for Fifa’s fan of the year award at the governing body’s “The Best” ceremony, which rewards supporters who have made an extraordinary contribution to the game.

Craig told BBC Scotland he came up with the plan while talking to a friend about how they were planning to travel to the tournament.

His route took him through Scotland, England, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany.

He said friends and family had a “mixed reaction” when he told them about his idea.

But he received a guard of honour and a hero’s welcome from the Tartan Army when he arrived in Munich’s Marienplatz 37 days after leaving the national stadium.

He was also presented with a ticket for the match against Germany at the Allianz Arena.

He has now been shortlisted for the prize alongside two other young football fans.

Fifa said the award “recognises that football supporters across the globe help make the beautiful game exactly that.”

He told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime his nomination was "surreal".

"To think about the amount of football fans there are in the world and Fifa has decided to shortlist me in the top three is just absolutely incredible," he said.

“It’s something I’m having to pinch myself from finding out about it in the last 48 hours, it’s amazing.”

Craig Ferguson was given a hero's welcome when he arrived to join the Tartan Army in Munich

Craig said he was inspired to take up the challenge after suffering with his own mental health.

He has since become an ambassador for the charity.

"Mental health as a whole is such an important topic worldwide at the moment, but I especially wanted to focus on men’s mental health with the whole challenge being around football," he said.

“It really was the perfect platform to talk about the whole topic in particular. The ambition of the challenge was to raise awareness and I hope that was achieved.

“Myself and many others up and down the UK and worldwide suffer with their mental health. It is not a journey that is linear, and I think that everyone knows someone or has their own personal struggles with it."

Craig said he took on the challenge after suffering with his own mental health

Craig is one of only two Scots nominated at the Fifa awards, with Chelsea midfielder Erin Cuthbert in the running for a spot in the World XI of the Year.

Fellow nominees in his category include Cruz Azul fan Jose Armando Guzman Mendoza, from Mexico, who died aged 14 in April, nine years after being diagnosed with leukaemia.

Fifa said his battle against the illness “inspired a nation and a football club”.

Meanwhile, Guilherme Gandra Moura, eight, from Brazil, lives with a rare genetic condition known as epidermolysis bullosa and was placed into a coma after falling ill with pneumonia.

A video of the young Vasco da Gama fan awaking and reuniting with his mother went viral online when it was posted last year.

He was later chosen to be a mascot for a game in August 2023 where he met his hero and Vasco forward Gabriel Pec.

The ceremony is scheduled to take place in January 2025.