1998: The Year Of Reckless Ambition

In 1998, thanks to a bumper TV deal with Sky Sports, a spending spree took the SPL's collective debt from 7.5 million pounds to 145 million just four years later. With contributions from Roger Mitchell, David Taylor, Brian Quinn, Martin Bain, John Boyle, Lex Gold, Sandy Clark, John Yorkston and Graham Spiers, we examine the how the failure to secure a second Sky deal and the disappearance of SPL TV plunged the league into chaos as clubs were swamped by debts they could not hope to pay.