Ewan Murray Opens Scotland Haiti Talk — World Cup 2026 Opening Ceremony Date And Time
Scotland’s opening match against Haiti is the issue at the heart of the world cup 2026 opening ceremony date and time chatter, and Ewan Murray answered reader questions in North Carolina with no softening of the stakes. Scotland are back at the World Cup for the first time since France 98, and the opening game has quickly become the sharpest measure of how this squad is being judged.
Asked whether there was any room to fear Haiti, one reader put it bluntly: "am I allowed to be scared shitless by the prospect of facing Haiti in our opening game?" Murray’s answer was just as direct: "Of course you are!"
North Carolina and the Haiti opener
Murray was fielding questions while reporting from North Carolina on Scotland’s return to the tournament. The exchange centered on Steve Clarke’s selections and the first opponent, with the Haiti fixture sitting at the top of the conversation because it is Scotland’s first World Cup appearance since France 98.
He also described the conditions waiting for Scotland as brutal. "It’s a shorts and T-shirt World Cup. Steaming hot. Everywhere." That kind of heat changes the rhythm of a group-stage game before a ball is even kicked, and it adds another layer to a match Scotland cannot afford to approach casually.
Steve Clarke’s selection calls
Clarke’s squad choices were another thread in the Q&A. Murray said the manager has a tendency not to use Billy Gilmour when others expect he will, and he pointed out that Gilmour’s Euro 2020/21 was ruined by Covid.
He also said Clarke had called the Scotland squad selection all right, while Tyler Fletcher ahead of Lennon Miller turned heads. Kieron Bowie and Oli McBurnie, he added, had strong cases for selection, which keeps the focus on how Clarke balances form, fit, and trust as the tournament opens.
Morocco and old warnings
Morocco were the other opponent Murray singled out, calling them very strong and saying they should be taken very seriously. That sits alongside a harder lesson from Scotland’s past: he said the team had previously been harmed by ignorance about opponents such as Costa Rica, Peru, Iran and Zaire.
For Scotland supporters, the practical read is plain. Haiti is not being treated as a warm-up, Clarke’s selections will be judged immediately, and the opening game now carries the weight of a return to the World Cup stage that has been missing since 1998.
