Recently, Scottish football enthusiasts, known as the lively Tartan Army, took the United States by storm. Their energetic travels between cities not only left a notable impression but also drained bars dry as they celebrated, all before their untimely departure from this year’s World Cup.
With their infectious laughter and playful spirit, the Scots have left many wondering if the allure of life across the Atlantic might indeed be more enticing than they had imagined.
In Boston, the Scottish fans won over the city’s female populace, sparking declarations that their faith in men had been revitalized after lengthy evenings spent in the company of kilts and good cheer.
Scotland may be celebrated for its Irn-Bru, bagpipes, and kilts, but its charm extends much further than these iconic emblems of Scottish culture.
Those who’ve crossed the ocean to settle in the U.S. have shared tales of the whimsical and enchanting nature of Scotland, the land whose national symbol is none other than a mythical creature.
But there are also practical differences which have led many of them to call it the ‘best decision of their lives’.
From the community feel of the pubs to the unrivalled sense of humour and sharp tongue of the locals, they became infatuated by the warmth of the Scots.
However, Americans also warned of the culture shocks, such as differences in the weather and unique Scottish phrases – or even the number of roundabouts.
Scottish football fans made their mark on American singles as they partied in Boston during this year’s World Cup
Jason Sorensen is an American who moved to Scotland in 2025 and now makes YouTube videos about living in the Scottish Highlands
Mother-of-three Lua Rodriguez Murphy, who married a Scot after meeting at the hotel she worked at in Las Vegas, visits a scenic lookout in the Scottish Highlands
Kath, an American content creator, reacted to some of the online commentary about Scottish people being in Boston for the World Cup.
She posts videos on her account @Kath4994675 and said she moved to Scotland after university having never visited before and not knowing anyone.
Kath said: ‘Americans experiencing Scottish people for the first time is so funny to me, like people in Boston saying “let’s keep their plane tickets so they are not allowed to leave”.
‘Like, yeah I know how awesome they are, that is why I moved over here and never looked back.
‘Everyone is like: “Kath, when are you moving home?”, and I’m not moving back to the States. I am good right here in Scotland.’
She said one of the surprising culture shocks was the amount of roundabouts which are on the roads compared to in the US.
Kath explained: ‘I did a lot of driving this weekend. More so than I have ever done since moving to Scotland and I was absolutely astonished by how many roundabouts there are.
‘One day driving around Edinburgh, Dunfermline, there were 20-plus roundabouts. Insane. Back home, where I’m from in the States, I drive on a roundabout maybe once a month. Here they are every five seconds. Its crazy.’
And rather than bemoaning the Scottish weather, Kath said she likes living somewhere ‘where the weather sucks for the majority of the year’.
She added: ‘Because then you wake up on that odd spring, summer day, really rare, and it is gorgeous outside.
‘You feel giddy, you feel childlike wonder, awe, it feels magical. You are just not going to get that feeling living in Miami.’
Another creator called Caelan shared some of his favourite Scottish phrases, as well as those which don’t sound right with an American voice.
Content creator Kath moved from the US to Scotland after finishing university and says she has ‘never looked back’
Caelan shared some Scottish phrases which he said do not sound right in his American accent
Caelan grew up in the US but is half-Scottish and half-American – and he has now recently moved to Scotland.
He shared one of his favourite Scottish phrases: ‘Where are yous off to the now’.
Caelan said: ‘It translates to where are you off to now, but I love that you in the sentence is unnecessarily made plural and “the” is unnecessarily put in front of “now.” It adds that extra level of whimsy or Scottishness.’
In another video, he shared some of the Scottish phrases which he said do not sound right in an American accent.
He said: ‘Cannae be bothered, Dinnae ken, any phrase which is an English word that is written in Scots, I probably shouldn’t say. But I love saying them. I just wanted to feel included.
‘I definitely do say scran, or skint, or grim, I think it is ok because it is already a word we use in the States.’
Kourtnee Monroe, an American model living in Scotland, has also compiled a list of culture shocks which she described as a New Yorker living there.
She said: ‘Everything closes early (especially Sundays). 24hr Tesco is great but lots of businesses close by 6pm.
‘As a New Yorker, it’s wild not being able to pop out at midnight for snacks. You won’t believe how many places I’ve been to find out they were closed for the night.’
Ms Monroe added: ‘Kids have so much freedom! This one genuinely shocked me. You will see young children walking home alone or playing outside in the dark.
‘That level of safety and independence? Never see that in America.’
And, like many Americans, Ms Monroe pointed out the benefits of paid holidays.
She said: ‘Speaking of freedom, paid holiday is standard, not a luxury in Scotland. In the US, zero paid vacation is still legal. In Scotland, people use their time off without guilt.
But in another video, she admitted that she missed the ‘Mind your business mindset’ of New Yorkers.
Ms Monroe said: ‘You can see the most unhinged things on Earth in the city and most people just notice and keep it moving.
‘Nobody misses a step. It’s a collective agreement to just mind your business (unless there’s danger of course.’
One of the biggest differences between the two countries was the amount of roundabouts in Scotland, content creator Kath said
American model Kourtnee Monroe traded her life in bustling New York City to move to Scotland
Applications for British citizenship by US residents reached a record of 9,300 last year, more than double the figure of those moving just four years ago.
As Donald Trump remains a polarising figure to some, a survey by property technology firm Goodlord has found that a disproportionate number of the newcomers shunning Trump’s America are settling in the homeland of his own Scottish mother, Mary Anne MacLeod.
Author and former comedian Christian Dean Lange, 63, was born in Montana and has lived in Los Angeles for the past 25 years.
But he decided to move to Scotland with his Scottish-born wife Lesley this year. The two met when she was general manager of a nightclub in the States.
Christian said: ‘It was last year that I got the lawyers in Glasgow and started the process.
‘It was quite a few factors that made me quit America. My wife had moved back here because she got homesick and couldn’t put up with the politics over there anymore.
‘And I was still working, so I stayed because that’s where all my work was. And then once I retired, it was always my plan to move here. It just happened a little bit sooner than I had thought.’
Christian admits that he also got fed up with American politics.
He explained: ‘I chose Scotland over America because it’s a lot less angry here. It’s gotten so nasty in America and I was living in Florida for the past few years, which is very Trump centric.
‘I was the only one in my neighbourhood that didn’t have a Trump sign in their yard during the election. There is a big gun culture and I’d even joke as part of my set that I was arrested once for not having a gun in my car.
‘In Tennessee, the views are also pretty extreme.’
Christian Dean Lange moved to Scotland with his wife from Los Angeles, California, this year
The author cited politics, retirement and the spirit of the Scottish people as reasons for moving
Christian had considered moving elsewhere but Scotland won his heart because the quality of life was better – and cheaper.
He said: ‘We went to New Zealand because I had done a tour there and loved it. It’s a beautiful country. But it’s just so insanely expensive to immigrate there.
‘The cost of living is cheaper here in Scotland, a more attractive prospect than elsewhere in the world. We also lived in Ecuador for a couple of years but, you know, it’s really the quality of life here in Scotland which is just fantastic.
‘America has become such a hustle society. Everybody seems to want to turn their hobbies into jobs and then have side hustles. And because things have gotten so expensive, nobody can really afford to not work all the time.
‘I understand I’m retired, and that makes things a bit different. But even when I wasn’t retired, I still had to work more than I would have here.
‘And the scones are so much better here too.
‘I just love the fact that there’s so many little, coffee shops and cafes that you can go to and it’s just so, so much nicer.
‘The pubs here are so completely different than bars in America. You go to a bar in America to get drunk. And here it’s more of a community thing.’
Healthcare was also a big factor in his decision-making process.
Christian said: ‘It also was cheaper for me to put a few grand into the NHS to come here. I had to do that as part of the process.
‘So the last whole year I lived in America with insurance was 2024 and it was $895 a month for health insurance. Americans complain about the long waits you have here in Britain to see a doctor. Well, you have the same waiting in America. You just have to pay much more for it.
‘When I was here last year, going through the lawyers and getting everything lined up to immigrate here, I had to go into the hospital. I had a little chest problem, and they couldn’t have been nicer.
‘And it’s still hard for me to go into the surgery here and and not show an ID. It’s just so much easier. You’ve got to pre-pay in America.
‘You got to show ID, you’ve got to show all kinds of different forms of identification.’
It seems a lot of Christian’s friends in the US are envious of his lifestyle in Scotland.
He said: ‘A lot of people saw Scotland during the World Cup too. Scotland was brilliant. A lot of my friends on Facebook sent me messages saying how jealous they are when I post pictures or something.
‘They are going, “oh, you’re so lucky”, but it’s still a process to go through. It’s not, it wasn’t easy.’
The move has helped his writing too, with Christian saying: ‘I have an urban fantasy novel out called In the Play of Shadows which is a lot of Celtic mythology. Scotland is a beautiful place to be. I really don’t want to live anywhere else.
‘I’ve been all over the world. I’ve been to most countries when I was performing, and this is my favourite place on Earth.
‘I was born and raised in Montana, so the weather is very similar. I prefer coolness. So, I mean, it is a little weird that it is August and it appears that summer is over but I like the weather. Rain makes everything green.’
Marketing manager Jason Sorensen said he had a ‘calling’ to emigrate to the UK and ended up settling in Scotland.
He travelled on a skilled worker visa in 2021 and lived in London before moving to Scotland in 2025.
Mr Sorensen traded the bustling and sunny San Francisco Bay for the rugged Scottish Highlands, saying it is the ‘best decision I have ever made’.
He said: ‘From my personal experience, I can hand on heart tell you that the Scots are the warmest, friendliest, nicest, most gregarious people.
‘I have been welcomed more warmly by more people, and had a frankly, far more positive experience here than I had in certain parts of the United States.
‘I love the US, it’s a great country. But there is no question about what you saw with the Tartan army in Boston. That wasn’t an act. That’s how the Scots are, just wonderful human beings who love to have a good time.’
Describing what makes the country attractive for prospective Americans, he agreed that healthcare was a large pull factor.
Jason Sorensen said he felt a ‘calling’ to emigrate to the UK and ended up settling in Scotland
‘If you’re born and raised in the US and you’ve never experienced single-payer healthcare, it’s quite an eye-opener, ‘ he said.
‘It is a significant advantage over the United States.’
The 46-year-old added: ‘There is a different culture regarding firearms.
‘I personally have nothing against firearms, and you can have countries and cultures where firearms are an integral part of the culture. Switzerland is an excellent example.
‘However, the way in which American culture deals with firearms, the numbers speak for themselves. But I believe that speaks to larger societal issues.
‘There is a better attitude towards firearms overall over here.’
Mr Sorensen also criticised the US ‘hustle culture’ and said he preferred the opportunities for work-life balance provided in the UK.
He added: ‘America is the best place in the world to make money and Europe is the best place in the world to spend that money.
‘There is, in my view, a better balance of work and life. Being able to have a life where it’s not just constant grind, grind, grind, grind until there’s nothing left of you.
‘In the UK, you still have to work hard. It’s very important to be a net contributor economically, especially as an immigrant.’
Mr Sorensen said as the world continues to change – with hotter temperatures and technology meaning more people can work from anywhere – Scotland will become an increasingly popular destination for those wishing to leave the US behind.
He said: ‘England and Wales have been absolutely devastated by drought this year.
‘Well, I live in the far north of Scotland where it’s actually been very, very pleasant.
‘We’re on the same latitude as southern Norway here.
‘So as climate bands shift, you’re going to have people looking at where to go to find some buffer against what’s coming over the next 50 years and is already here.
‘And in America alone, there are 2.5million people with some level of Scottish descent. And statistically speaking, some of these people are going to be interested in finding out more about where they come from.
‘If you’re coming from America, American history only goes back realistically to about the middle of the 17th century.
‘Whereas if I leave my house and I walk for 20 minutes, I can be in the middle of a stone circle from the Bronze Age.
‘We don’t have anything like that in America. That just doesn’t exist.
‘And if you’re the type of person that’s searching for deeper meaning, some sort of deeper connection to family, clan, heritage, land, you know, where you come from, where your ancestors come from, then that will draw a lot of people here.’
Lua Rodriguez Murphy, 36, met her Scottish husband while he was holidaying at the hotel she worked at in Las Vegas.
After they got engaged, the couple decided to move in together in Glasgow where they now live with their three children.
Lua Rodriguez Murphy moved from Las Vegas to Glasgow, and has been revealing the biggest ‘culture shocks’ she has faced since the move in a series of TikTok videos
Ms Rodriguez Murphy, originally from California, makes candid videos about adjusting to life in Scotland as an American.
Asked what the best thing about living in Scotland was, she said it was ‘hands down, the people.’
She said: ‘Everyone is so chatty, and welcoming and easy to talk to. And so, so funny! Scottish humour truly is something else.’
Ms Rodriguez Murphy also feels that when it comes to education, Scots do it better.
She added: ‘Scotland is a nation where a first-class, world-leading education is accessible to all. I’m grateful that my children will be able to go to college for free.
‘Student debt is so hard to pay off in the US and it really discourages people from pursuing a career because it’s so expensive and the interest in loans are so high.’
However, she believes Americans take the lead when it comes to customer service.
She added: ‘I think Americans go above and beyond when it comes to keeping a customer happy. I also feel Americans are so enthusiastic and great at entertaining.
‘Basketball games, baseball games, pep rallies and entertainment are all so much better back home. They love getting the crowd involved, handing out prizes, doing dance cams, cheerleading and more!
‘Even at the university level, college stadiums are filled to the brim with people watching young athletes play. Which I don’t think is very common here.’
