Johnnie Walker Thai League: 1997

With all the hype that currently surrounds Thai domestic football it's easy to forget that there was a time when information was extremely difficult to come by. Following the local leagues was very much a minority pastime up until a few years ago and press coverage, particularly by the English language media, was very thin on the ground.

Nowadays we have numerous websites, magazines, newspapers and TV channels dedicated to reporting on the game, in Thai, English and many other languages, and most TPL clubs are guaranteed to pull in a few thousand, rather than a few dozen, fans for their home games.

Below is an article from 1997, which was when I first started to watch Thai football, about the restructuring of the league. 

Johnny Walker Thailand League
by Unknown
March, 1997
The league will be reduced in size to consist of only 12 teams for season 1997. The competing clubs will be: Bangkok Bank, Stock Exchange of Thailand, Thai Farmers Bank Bank, Telephone Organisation of Thailand, Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Air Force, Sinthana, UCOM- Rajpracha, Royal Thai Navy, Port Authority of Thailand Tero-Sasana and Police.

Another six teams, who failed to make it into the top 12 elite, Tobacco Monopoly, Osotsapha, Bangkok Bank of Commerce, Rajvithi, Krungthai Bank and Thamrongthai will join the top four teams from the old second division - Rayong, Samut Prakan, Royal Household Bureau and Bank for Agriculture and Co-Operatives - to make up a new second tier.

It was also confirmed that there will be no play-offs for the championship this year and just one team will go either down to the Second Division and up to the first. However, the second bottom team in the top division will have to face the second placed team in the second division to decide who takes up a place in the top 12 next year.