Why Celtic v Rangers Scottish Cup semi-final date could be determined by Glasgow Kiltwalk

Celtic and Rangers will face each other in the Scottish Cup semi-finals with the exact date and time of the Hampden showdown yet to be determined.

The fifth meeting between the fierce rivals this season will take place over the weekend of April 29 and 30 but, due to a clash with another major event in Glasgow, one date could be more likely than the other.

The annual Kiltwalk, involving thousands of walkers taking to the streets to raise funds for charity, is taking place on the Sunday with road closures planned across the city. Extra police resources will be also be taken up which, along with a more crowded city centre, makes the prospect of staging a 51,866 sell-out at the national stadium a bigger challenge for authorities.

This could make it more likely that the Falkirk v Inverness semi-final would be staged on the Sunday, where a smaller attendance is expected. However, there are also hurdles to overcome should the SFA opt to stage the Old Firm clash on the Saturday.

Celtic's Aaron Mooy (L) and Rangers' John Lundstram in action during the Viaplay Cup final at Hampden last month. (Photo by Paul Devlin / SNS Group)

An afternoon kick-off would be ruled out due to the 3pm TV black-out while broadcasters would also be keen to avoid clashing with the London derby between Chelsea and Arsenal taking place at 5.30pm. That would appear to restrict the kick-off to a lunchtime slot on the Saturday.

Past encounters would suggest that a Sunday 2pm kick-off time would be the preferred choice for the Celtic v Rangers semi-final if the logistics around a clash with the Kiltwalk can be overcome. The sides met at Hampden last month with Celtic coming out on top with a 2-1 victory in the Viaplay Cup final.