First Bus x Aberdeen FC - AFC Christian Ramirez (l), First Bus Scotland MD Duncan Cameron (r)

First Bus to give Aberdeen FC fans FREE matchday travel to home games during 22/23 season

The offer means Aberdeen fans across the city can travel to games easily and free of charge

First Aberdeen has announced Aberdeen football fans will be entitled to FREE matchday travel to home games on its services as it further enhances its partnership as Official Public Transport partner for Aberdeen FC.

A long-term supporter of Aberdeen FC, First Bus will continue to work collaboratively with the club to encourage supporters to make more use of public transport and to travel sustainably, particularly when travelling on a matchday to Pittodrie.

Supporters will be able to take advantage of the offer across all home matches during the 2022/23 season, starting with the Premier Sports Cup match against Dumbarton this Wednesday, 13th July.

Ticket holders will receive a promo code ahead of each match, sent via email by the club. This code offers 100% discount on a First Day Adult Ticket when redeemed at checkout on the First Bus App.

To help launch the new initiative, Aberdeen first team players Joe Lewis, Marley Watkins, Vicente Besuijen and Kelle Roos took on some bus driver challenges at First Aberdeen’s King Street depot.

The free travel offer is only available to fans who have signed up to the club mailing list and is available to access via the First Bus App only. This offer cannot be used for tickets purchased on board the bus and is only valid to redeem on match days.

The First Bus App is free to download and allows fans to plan their matchday journeys, as well as track their bus in real-time.

Graeme Macfarlan, Commercial Director for First Bus Scotland, said: “We are delighted to further enhance our partnership with Aberdeen FC to help fans get to and from games in a safe, easy, environmentally friendly way.

“First Bus has been part of the community for many years in Aberdeen and is rooted in our business as the birthplace of our company. Our partnership with the football club will allow us to reach a wider audience to further encourage people to choose public transport as their preferred method of travel, especially on matchdays at Pittodrie and we are delighted to continue to show our commitment to that support”

Rob Wick, Aberdeen Football Club Commercial Director, added: “First Bus have been a long-term supporter of the Club given their close links within the local community and this latest initiative is a great example of how our partners are working with us to improve the overall match-day experience for our fans.

“Given the cost-of-living crisis which many are facing we are committed to doing what we can to make football affordable for all and recently extended the 0% interest over six months on season tickets in an effort to help.  The opportunity for supporters to travel to Pittodrie for free will result in a saving for many and by using the complimentary service, fans travelling with First Bus will be able to do so in both a safe and sustainable manner which aligns with the Club’s clear commitment to tackling climate change.”

“We thank First Bus for working with the Club on this creative and engaging offer for supporters and I am sure it will have a positive impact for many.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

For more information please contact Craig Dennett, PR Manager for Scotland at craig.dennett@firstbus.co.uk

Notes to editors

About First Bus

First Bus is one of the UK’s largest bus operators. Making journeys easier for our customers, we were the first national bus operator to accept contactless card payments across all of our services and our First Bus App is voted ‘best in class’ amongst UK bus operators. Our most recent investments are in new, state-of-the-art buses across our key networks.

We work proactively with our local authority partners, making a positive impact on air quality, tackling congestion and improving customer experience. We are focused on First Bus becoming a leader in the transition to a low-carbon future and are committed to operating a zero-emission bus fleet by 2035; we have pledged not to purchase any new diesel buses after December 2022. We also operate the Aircoach network in Ireland.

First Bus is a division of FirstGroup.

For more information on First Bus: news-scot.firstbus.co.uk