'Bring it on' says Clarke as Scotland face Brazil, Morocco & Haiti in World Cup

Steve Clarke says Scotland can "bring a little bit of magic" to the World Cup after being drawn to face Brazil, Morocco and Haiti in a nostalgic return to the men's finals next year.

The Scots are making their first appearance at the tournament for 28 years, where they will play two of their foes from the 1998 competition in the form of Brazil and Morocco.

Clarke's side will open against Haiti on Sunday 14 June (02:00 BST) in Boston.

They will then take on Morocco on Friday 19 June (23:00) in Boston again, before finishing against five-time winners Brazil in Miami on Wednesday 24 June (23:00).

Scotland's opener was initially listed as the 13 June, but due to the time difference will kick off in the early Sunday morning for fans back home.

"Bring it on," Clarke told BBC Sport Scotland.

"The draw's fantastic. One of the big things in my head was no European teams.

"So we're playing three top sides from three different continents of the world and that's what the World Cup's all about."

The finals are being held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with most games in the USA.

Scotland were drawn as a pot three team at a mammoth ceremony in Washington DC after dramatically stunning Denmark in one of the country's finest ever nights to top their qualifying group.

Unsurprisingly, the Scots have never played against Haiti, who are 84th in the Fifa world rankings.

Under Clarke, Scotland have made it to two European Championships, but reaching next summer's finals represents a monumental watershed moment for a nation starved of appearances from their men's side at a finals for nearly three decades.

In 1998, Scotland and Brazil opened the World Cup at the Stade de France, when a second-half Tom Boyd own goal gave the South Americans a narrow 2-1 win.

Following a 1-1 draw with Norway, Scotland went to Saint-Etienne with hope of progression, only to be beaten 3-0 by Morocco.

"Haiti as the pot four team will be difficult," added 62-year-old Clarke. "They won their qualifying section quite comfortably, but we managed to win ours as well so bring it on.

"Brazil, especially in a World Cup, is going to be a special occasion. The Brazilian fans are great, but the Tartan Army's pretty special as well."

Some of their World Cup rivals need less of an introduction than others.

It will be a first meeting between Haiti and the Scots, but Clarke and his team will not be taking them lightly.

They beat Nicaragua 2-0 last month to qualify for just their second World Cup - despite their manager having never been to the Caribbean island.

Sebastien Migne has been unable to set foot on Haiti since being appointed 18 months ago because a conflict in the country forces them to play their home matches 500 miles away in Curacao - an island nation just off the coast of South American country Venezuela.

Scotland have not faced Morocco since that game in Saint-Etienne, which has been their only meeting.

Perhaps worryingly for Clarke, Morocco are on a 12-game winning streak.

Brazil are closing the new year with a mixed bag of results. In their last outing they drew 1-1 with Tunisia, and they have also lost to Japan and Bolivia in recent months.

However, Carlo Ancelotti's star-studded team will still go to the finals in the mix, and Scotland will be hoping they don't meet them in Atlanta or Miami needing a positive result.