In November 2016, former footballer Andy Woodward came forward with a shocking tale of abuse that he suffered at the hands of his youth coach, Barry Bennell. In the storm that followed, hundreds of men made allegations against hundreds of their childhood coaches. The first episode of the series begins with Andy's momentous revelation, then goes back in time to the 1970s to hear from former players Paul Stewart and David White as they describe growing up in Manchester.

Following on from the seismic revelations of historical child abuse in football in November 2016, this episode explores how opportunities were missed to stop offenders decades ago and why it took so long for the full scale of abuse to emerge. It follows the investigation into former Southampton youth coach Bob Higgins, filming alongside Hampshire Police detectives as they conduct interviews with Higgins and the survivors.

The final episode begins in Newcastle with the stories of survivors who suffered at the hands of George Ormond, a youth coach connected to Newcastle United. Northumbria Police have begun their own investigation, alongside those already taking place in the north west and Southampton. We hear the dramatic tale of former footballer Derek Bell, who confronted Ormond hoping to secretly record a confession from his abuser on a tape recorder hidden in his pocket.