I’m a Scotland fan in Oz – I’m spending £10k & travelling 8,000 miles for Euros

A DEVOTED Scotland fan splashed out £10,000 to travel 8,000 miles to Germany for Euro 2024.

Christopher Proctor relocated from Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, to Jindalee in Perth, Western Australia, 13 years ago.

The 43-year-old has been a member of the Tartan Army travel group for the last 30 years and even wakes up at 3am to watch qualifying games Down Under.

Christopher, who has previously watched his beloved team in France, Holland and Italy, is set to embark on a 24-hour journey tonight ahead of Scotland’s opener clash with Germany on Friday.

He has spent in the region of £10,000 on hospitality tickets, flights and accommodation for the bumper two-week trip.

But he doesn’t care as he branded it a “once in a lifetime opportunity”.

Dad-of-two Christopher told The Scottish Sun: “I did my apprenticeship in Peterhead but I always knew I wanted to live here at some point, so I moved and got my permanent residency. I haven’t looked back since.

“I’ve been a member of the Scotland travel club for the last 30 years and I went to all the qualifying games leading up to France in 1998, but I was too young to attend at the time.

“I said to myself I would go to the next tournament we qualify for. Low and behold I had to wait 26 years.

“I would’ve gone to Euro 2020 but I couldn’t make it due to Covid restrictions.

“As soon as Scotland qualified for the Euros and before the draw was made, I bought hospitality package for all three games. I wasn’t going to miss this for the world.

“I leave Perth tonight and I’ll be catching up with about 25 friends from back home while I’m there. I’ve been counting down the days for months.”

Christopher, who works as a production specialist in the oil and gas industry, faces an 11-hour leg from Perth to Doha followed by a four-hour layover and a six-hour flight to Munich.

He has the full support of his two kids Imogen, 12, and Ellis, six, and his envious colleagues.

He added: “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.

“The kids are really excited about me making this journey, I’ve had the Scotland music playing every day and they sing ‘No Scotland, no party’ constantly.

“For every qualifying game I would get up at 3am our time and I haven’t missed a game yet.

“I’m quietly optimistic about Scotland’s chances. We tend to play better against big teams so I’m hoping for a draw or a win against Germany on Friday night.”

Christopher says the passionate Scotland support in Western Australia makes him feel right at home.

He said: “The support for Scotland in Australia is huge. The pubs and venues all sell out when the games are on at 3am. It’s like a home from home here.

“A lot of my colleagues are Scottish and they’re really jealous, they’re all telling me I’m going to have the time of my life!”