Disaster Index: 5.8 Entry: The Gordon Dependency Cause: Scotland's first-choice goalkeeper is 43 years old, has clinically died twice, and represents the difference between a functioning last line and an unplanned experiment under tournament conditions. Category: Structural Evidence: Craig Gordon is the oldest outfield or goalkeeping participant at the 2026 World Cup. His inclusion followed a cardiac episode serious enough to require resuscitation. He is fit. He is selected. The margin between his availability and his unavailability is not abstract. Historical precedent: Scotland have a documented tendency to carry a single irreplaceable element into tournaments with no adequate contingency. The element then becomes the tournament's central question rather than its settled answer. Affected parties: The defence, which has been organised around Gordon's distribution and command for the qualifying campaign. The goalkeeping options behind him, who have not operated at this level. The supporters, who have been asked to process the miracle without quite processing the risk it contains. Immediate outlook: Gordon is fit and named. The index is elevated not because he is likely to fail but because the margin for unplanned succession is unusually thin, and Scotland have historically not been well-served by unusually thin margins. Filed: 2026-06-09 / Pre-tournament, squad confirmed