Clubs face ruin after losing claim

DOZENS of English clubs are facing the threat of oblivion after the Football League lost their claim for £131.9million against Carlton and Granada, parent companies of the now defunct ITV Digital.

A judge ruled that the digital television company's owners, media companies Carlton and Granada, were not liable for the £132 million the league was claiming under its original broadcasting rights deal.

The ruling was a savage blow to the survival hopes of many of the league's 72 professional clubs who play in the three divisions outside the premier league.