Hull City owner Acun Ilicali is preparing for the club's return to the Premier League, the latest milestone in a life that has taken him from bankruptcy and personal tragedy to television stardom. Dubbed Turkey's Simon Cowell, Ilicali has become one of the most recognisable figures in his home country, a rise that might once have seemed unlikely after he was declared bankrupt in his twenties. Now, as Hull prepare for their first season back in the top flight since he bought the club in 2022, he says he is approaching the challenge with the same determination that has defined much of his life.