Leicester’s decline: From Premier League champions to League One
LEICESTER — Booed as they entered the pitch prior to the match, subjected to hostile chants from their own fans, and urged to “leave our club” by supporters as the team faced relegation to League One — this was not the way Leicester City envisioned commemorating the 10th anniversary of their extraordinary Premier League achievement.
Nearly ten years have passed since Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester, the 5000-1 outsiders, clinched the Premier League title, and it is difficult to contest that there has never been a more improbable football success story anywhere.
However, this occasion brought no celebration, no Andrea Bocelli performing “Nessun Dorma” at the center circle, only resentment and frustration, highlighted by club owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha’s reaction as fans chanted “sack the board” at the conclusion of the match.
“The broader perspective is that relegation doesn’t happen over just three or four matches; it occurs over the course of a season,” stated Leicester manager Gary Rowett, who took over from interim coach Andy King in February after Marti Cifuentes’ departure a month prior. “We must learn from this. The club must recognize that this is a painful chapter in the journey of a football club.
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“This club won the Premier League not too long ago. That was an incredible peak for the fans and everyone connected with the club. The club must rise again, but it needs to learn from its mistakes, as this season has been filled with regret.”
Former Foxes winger Matt Piper, providing commentary for Radio Leicester, characterized the relegation as the “worst” moment in the club’s history.
“Leicester finds itself in League One without any real leadership, which concerns me,” Piper remarked. “When leadership is absent, things deteriorate. This is an incredibly low point for the football club, likely the worst in its history. People are uncertain about what to do.”
Despite the romanticism surrounding Leicester’s title victory, football is ultimately a harsh and unforgiving sport, a reality underscored at a sparsely filled King Power Stadium as Rowett’s team was relegated following a 2-2 draw with Hull City.
Leicester now shares the unfortunate distinction with Swindon Town, Southampton, Sunderland, and Luton Town of experiencing consecutive relegations from the Premier League to League One. Only Blackburn Rovers, champions in 1995 and relegated to League One in 2017, can relate to the humiliation Leicester faces as former Premier League winners now competing in the third tier.
Next season’s schedule will feature two league matches against Bromley — a team that was in the fifth tier National League when Leicester won the Premier League in 2016 — along with unremarkable local derbies against Mansfield Town and Burton Albion, marking a stark new reality for Leicester.
So, where did it all go awry? Leicester’s 2016 title triumph may have been a miraculous anomaly, yet it stemmed from astute recruitment by a club aspiring to be the best and most effectively managed team outside the Premier League’s so-called Big Six: Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, and Manchester City.
The title-winning squad was not built with unlimited funds but rather through budget-friendly acquisitions such as N’Golo Kante (Β£5.6 million), Jamie Vardy (Β£1 million), and Riyad Mahrez (Β£400,000), who became club legends in Ranieri’s championship team.
When Kante and Mahrez transferred to Chelsea and Manchester City, respectively, Leicester earned a combined Β£90 million from their transfer fees, indicating that the club’s model appeared robust and envied by rivals, both large and small.
Even after the tragic passing of owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha in a helicopter crash in October 2018, Leicester demonstrated resilience by achieving two fifth-place finishes under Brendan Rodgers and winning the FA Cup with the former Liverpool manager in 2021.
However, by that time, underlying issues were surfacing due to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and its effects on King Power — a Thailand-based duty-free retail company — which saw its revenue severely impacted by the global travel halt. King Power could no longer support Leicester with their ambitions and financial strength, leading to errors in player recruitment and increasing losses, both on and off the pitch, culminating in relegation from the Premier League in 2023.
Although Enzo Maresca — one of six managers since Rodgers was dismissed in April 2023 — led the Foxes to an immediate return to the top tier from the Championship during his single season in charge, cumulative losses of Β£201 million between 2022 and 2024 resulted in a breach of Premier League financial regulations. The EFL imposed a six-point deduction this season (the EFL took over the case following Leicester’s relegation in 2025) for that financial violation.
With Leicester entering Tuesday’s match against Hull eight points from safety, the six-point deduction was undoubtedly a significant setback; however, having lost 10 and secured only two victories in their 19 league matches in 2026, the points penalty is not the primary cause of their relegation.
The Leicester supporters, who have engaged in a prolonged campaign against the ownership and chief football officer Jon Rudkin, have recently directed their frustration towards the players.
Following the defeat at Portsmouth on Saturday, fans chanted “you’re not fit to wear the shirt” as the Foxes players hesitantly acknowledged them at the match’s conclusion, and former England midfielder Harry Winks, a Β£10 million acquisition from Tottenham in 2023, was recorded having a heated exchange with fans as he boarded the team bus outside the stadium.
Winks, who was named as a substitute against Hull, faced boos whenever he warmed up on the sidelines and received similar treatment — along with some additional loud, unpleasant chants — when he replaced Jordan James in the 61st minute.
Just two minutes later, Oli McBurnie scored for Hull to level the match at 2-2, leaving Winks, who was escorted to his vehicle by security after the match, possibly feeling that misfortune is following him.
A late push by the home side demonstrated some determination, but it ultimately proved ineffective — the final outcome means Leicester is relegated with two matches remaining.
What lies ahead for the club remains uncertain. The images of title heroes Vardy, Mahrez, Kante, and Kasper Schmeichel still adorn the stadium walls, but they now serve as reminders of a fleeting, yet glorious, period.
Owner Srivaddhanaprabha eliminated Β£124 million of the club’s debt earlier this year and has pledged to restore the team, but he faces a challenge in regaining the support of the fans, who remained after the match to protest outside the stadium.
“We want our club back,” “what a waste of money,” and “King Power, get out of our club” were the emphatic messages from the supporters. A decade ago, it was “we are the champions,” but that refrain will not be heard again in the near future.
