JOHN SOUTTAR is one of six Rangers players at this summer’s FIFA World Cup after being selected in Steve Clarke’s Scotland squad. A first appearance on the global stage for the side in 28 years, Souttar has emerged as an important piece of the Scotland outfit in recent years. In the lead up to the start of the tournament, we take an in-depth look at each of our representatives: INTERNATIONAL JOURNEY After announcing himself as Dundee United’s youngest ever player in 2013, Souttar was regularly involved in the Scotland Under-19s set-up. As his career took him south to Edinburgh after a transfer to Hearts, his performances earned him international recognition at Under-21 level. Indeed, he captained his country at youth level in November 2017 as the Under-21s played out a 1-1 draw with Latvia. With Scotland stewarded by former treble-winning Rangers manager, Alex McLeish, Souttar’s first senior exposure arrived when he was called into the squad in May 2018. However, he had to bide his time to make his debut, arriving in a friendly against Belgium, fresh off their semi-final appearance at the 2018 World Cup, where he played the full 90 minutes. He backed it up with a first competitive start against Albania at Hampden three days later. A lengthy injury lay-off unfortunately curtailed the defender’s involvement in his country’s successful European Championship qualifying campaign in 2020, earned in a famous penalty shootout victory over Serbia in Belgrade. Following a three-year absence from international duty, Souttar was recalled by Clarke for the side’s World Cup qualifiers in November 2021 where he would leave his mark in a memorable triumph over Denmark. Requiring victory against the hitherto unbeaten Dane’s to seal a seeded berth in the World Cup play-offs, the defender was given the nod from the off and headed home the opener in an eventual 2-0 win. It was an undoubtedly emotional moment for Souttar who had been forced to watch Scotland compete in a first major tournament since 1998 earlier in the same year from home. After playing his part in helping Scotland secure European Championship qualification once again, this time in 2024, Souttar suffered further disappointment when he was cut from Clarke’s final selection. The defender was part of the manager’s provisional squad but dropped out alongside goalkeeper Craig Gordon. As has been the theme of his career, the defender simply didn’t allow the disappointment to linger. By the start of Scotland’s UEFA Nations League campaign in 2024, he was instrumental in the side earning clean sheets against both Portugal and Croatia. In fact, it was his delivery against Poland from which Andy Robertson nodded home in stoppage time to earn Scotland a priceless late victory. From there, Souttar started in four of Scotland’s five World Cup qualifying fixtures, with his involvement on that famous evening against Denmark, which secured their place at this summer’s tournament, only cut short due to an injury sustained in the warm-up. THE SEASON THAT WAS In a competitive campaign which began all the way back on July 22, 2025, Souttar made 38 appearances across the season. He never missed a minute across the side’s opening 11 league fixtures, wearing the captain’s armband in the 1-0 victory over Hibernian at Easter Road. Injury disrupted his involvement in the run up to Christmas, returning in the 1-0 triumph over Motherwell in the penultimate fixture of 2025. Souttar’s impressive form earned him a spot in the Scotland squad for the World Cup, where he will look to make a lasting impression on the global stage.