Celtic vs Aberdeen will NOT be televised – and here are the multiple reasons why fans are sick about it

Celtic vs Aberdeen will NOT be televised – and here are the multiple reasons why fans are sick about it.

Fans of Scottish football will be able to see what needs to change even though the game of the day will be blacked out.

Ignore the rationale; we’ll mull it over later. Rather, let us focus on the how of an own goal that seems avoidable.

In two weeks, champions Celtic and Aberdeen, who have won an incredible 13 straight games under Jimmy Thelin, will square off in

Glasgow’s east end between two Premiership teams with spotless records. The team that, for some reason, managed to avoid the brink

of relegation before Peter Leven cleaned  the damage left  Neil Warnock the previous season has been given fresh life by the amazing Swede.

So how remarkable is this Granite City turnaround, you say? If Thelin masterminds a win against Celtic he will have equalled

Aberdeen’s pre-split win total of eight in 25 fewer matches. So, how can the average dedicated follower of Scottish football tune into

this can’t miss match? Well, er, there’s a wee catch, you won’t be able to watch the game live in Britain.

of a bygone era.

The Covid pandemic isn’t remembered fondly but it did allow football chiefs to get creative and think differently over kick-off times,

scheduling and with every punter being reduced to becoming an armchair follower, it led to innovations which have not been

maintained since the world returned to before.

It would be incorrect to claim that the 3 p.m. blackout restriction is the sole issue at hand; Scottish football’s TV deal must also be

taken into account. Sky’s contract contains a few clauses and buffers that are relevant to the battle of the unbeaten not being on the TV

schedule. The 48 games that were broadcast on television each season have increased to 60, and Premier Sports will now have the

opportunity to broadcast an additional 20 games. Clubs can use PPVs, but not on Saturdays during danger hours. The exciting 2-1

victory between Celtic and Motherwell in October 2023 began at noon on a Saturday, therefore it met the requirements.

Celtic and Rangers had both won eight consecutive games to start the season in 2010 before Walter Smith’s side reigned

supreme in Glasgow’s east end. But these types of games, more akin to boxers putting their undefeated records on the line,

are so uniquely fleeting, they can’t help result in a collective groan from those who won’t be inside Celtic Park.