29 March 2021 is the 25th anniversary of the very first game in Super League, so part one of a special double episode steps back in time to examine the events that led up to the summer rugby league revolution.

We trace Super League's roots back to the problems that British rugby league faced from the 1970s, which escalated in the 1980s. Wage inflation, spiralling transfer fees, and the costs incurred after the Bradford City and Hillsborough disasters took the sport to the brink... and then came the satellite TV boom.

For more on the history of rugby and the other football codes, take a look at www.rugbyreloaded.com - where you can find the links for this episode - and follow me on Twitter at @collinstony