A rare look of concern crossed the faces of a few Scotland fans when I told them of my plan.
Travelling across Germany for Euro 2024 I’ve seen a few interesting sights.
But one which stuck in my head was of an England supporter hastily zipping up his jacket when approaching a massive crowd of kilt-wearing Tartan Army diehards.
Given the outpouring of love and good humour I’d seen this group bring I wondered; was it possible those kind faces would drop simply at the sight of the Three Lions crest?
So I was going to test it: I’d walk through the Scotland fans in my England shirt.
“Be careful,” a lad from the Isle of Skye told me, “there are some idiots out there.”
He looked genuinely upset at the possibility of me recording a moment of Scotland fan disgrace.
“It’ll be fine,” I reassured him, and myself.
Another accommodating Scotsman Jack Sharp, from Dunfermline offered a more nuanced view.
“Physically you’ll be fine,” he explained, “but mentally and emotionally you’ll be scarred.”
I pushed aside any doubt that the famous Tartan Army could turn nasty as I packed my red England shirt to put the theory to the test.
It would be at the climax of the tournament for Scotland in Stuttgart where around 25,000 had descended for the final group game.
There was a sense of giddy anticipation in the air with the possibility of the nation qualifying for the knockout stage for the first time ever hanging in the balance.
Win or lose it was clear those who’d made the trip to Stuttgart intended to party, I saw a man being filmed vomiting into a bin by a mate who then proceeded to rub his back.
Buckfast, the sugary tonic wine popular north of the border, was being chugged by the 70CL bottle.
“Zak is getting battered, everywhere he goes,” quipped our photographer Rowan in reference to the England chant “Scotland getting battered everywhere they go,” a possibility I was starting to worry might come to pass.
Emerging from an alleyway in my red England top I immediately got dirty looks from a group of 50-year-old men in kilts and Scots guard hats.
As I entered a busier area I started getting booed, but it was expected and good-natured.
“What’s he doing?” a passing Tartan Army fan exclaimed with a smile before another chanted “what the f***king hell is that?”
Grinning from ear to ear he approached me for a hug.
I then met the first person who seemed genuinely offended. “f**k you, you English c**t,” he shouted, not mincing his words.
This was followed up by the witty chant “we hate England more than you,” which, given the turgid display versus Denmark days earlier, might have been a little too close to the money.
As I walked through the crowds of thousands, most people looked at the shirt and made no comment, those who did used it as a chance to bring out their favourite anti-English chant.
“Ooooh Diego Maradona, he put the English, out out out,” a group called to the tune of the hokie-cokie.
I felt a tap on my arm from a fan who turned to me and said: “You’ve got the wrong top on pal,” which cracked me up.
Most people that stopped me did so to shake my hand or give me a hug, it was all smiles and good vibes.
As I reached the centre of the crowd a man in a kilt booted a beach ball at me which brought both cheers and boos as many realised there was an England fan in their midst.
“That was on purpose” the Scotsman joked.
A rendition of a rather mean and not very politically correct song about Harry Kane followed.
As I made my way out of the crowd I could hear the sound of bagpipes and I was embraced a few more times.
Just before I was clear a big man in a red kilt stopped me. Here it comes, I thought, what’s he going to do?
“You’ve got some f**king b**ls son,” he said.
But the courage wasn’t really mine, it was the Tartan Army who deserve that recognition for showing more love than hate even when subjected to the sight of an Englishman with the Three Lions on his chest.
You can watch the full video here.
