"Air Miles" Angus Robertson, never one to turn down a free foreign trip, is one of three SNP ministers heading out to Germany to watch Scotland play at Euro 2024. While regular members of the Tartan Army are being forced to pay up to £1,000 to witness Steve Clarke's men play, the taxpayer is funding travel and expenses for these junkets.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Government confirmed that the First Minister would be in attendance for the Scots' opening clash with Germany in Munich, and would also be opening a fan zone in the city as well alongside the Bavarian mayor and Edinburgh's Lord Provost.
Sports minister Maree Todd will have the privilege of attending Scotland's second game in the competition on Wednesday night, taking in the game against Switzerland in Cologne. And Mr Robertson, the Europe, Constitution and Culture Secretary will be in attendance next Sunday night for the potentially pivotal match against Hungary in Stuttgart.
Mr Robertson is the Scottish Government's most frequent flyer, already enjoying publicly funded trips to New York and Copenhagen so far this year. He refused to stand for SNP leader to replace Nicola Sturgeon to spend more time with his family but has flown abroad numerous times in the last year.
READ MORE: Full bill for Angus Robertson's taxpayer-funded jolly to New York for 'Tartan Week' revealed
The SNP also attempted to utilise Scotland kicking off the Euros to boost its support ahead of the July 4 General Election. Despite struggling for cash, the party launched a series of billboards across the country to claim that joining the European Union as an independent country was the "next best thing" to Steve Clarke's men getting to the final of the footballing competition.
But the Nats have yet to be straight with Scexit-supporting Scots about how they will be able to get a second referendum when the next Prime Minister says no. An independent Scotland would also likely take up to a decade to get invited into the trading bloc once the UK is broken up.
Mr Swinney unveiled one of the election billboards in Edinburgh on Thursday which features the slogan "Scotland back in Europe. As we should be. Good luck to the boys.” He repeated this at First Minister Questions when he wished the team good luck ahead of the clash.
He said: "Tomorrow, Scotland will be back in Europe – as we should be. I have every confidence that we can go all the way to the final of Euro 2024. But on the off chance that Scotland don’t win the Euros, the SNP is offering Scotland the next best thing – a permanent route back into Europe as an independent nation.”
Scottish Conservative shadow constitution secretary Meghan Gallacher told the Scottish Daily Express: "This latest stunt from John Swinney shows that constitutional obsession will always be the top priority for the SNP. Voters want the nationalists to focus on their real priorities, rather pushing for independence at every turn.
"In key seats up and down Scotland, if voters unite around the Scottish Conservatives, they can help beat the SNP, end their independence obsession for good and move the focus onto their real priorities such as reducing NHS waiting times and creating good jobs."
Never miss the latest top headlines from the Scottish Daily Express. Sign up to our daily newsletter here.