The reason why Dundee v Aberdeen has switched to unusual Saturday kick-off time

Dundee’s upcoming home match against Aberdeen has been moved from the traditional Saturday afternoon kick-off time in order to serve an international TV audience.

Dens Park will now host Dundee v Aberdeen at 6pm on Saturday, October 16 (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

The cinch Scottish Premiership fixture at Dens Park was originally scheduled for the usual 3pm slot on Saturday, October 16, but the game will now kick-off at 6pm after the two clubs reached an agreement with the SPFL and Police Scotland over the later start time.

Aberdeen, whose chairman is US-based businessman Dave Cormack, and Dundee, who are owned by American duo Tim Keyes and John Nelms, have primarily agreed to the switch with the intention of appealling to viewers in the US market.

Cormack previously approached Hibs with a similar plan to trial Saturday night Premiership football for a match at Pittodrie in March last year.

The move fell through after the Easter Road outfit expressed concerns over travel arrangements to and from the Granite City for their fans.

It is understood that the Dundee v Aberdeen fixture has been selected due to the close proximity between the two cities.

Cormack has previously stated: “I would like to see us try a Saturday night kick-off.

“There are thousands of people in Aberdeen who play amateur or youth football and rightly so in the city.”

It is not the first Premiership match to move to a Saturday evening kick-off this season. The fixture between Hearts and Celtic at Tynecastle on the opening day of the new campaign was also pushed back to an 8pm start at the request of Sky Sports.

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