Leicester City

Before 2015, Leicester City’s history was that of a top second-tier football club, if that makes sense. Since their founding in 1884, they have spent all but one year in the top two flights of English football, and in fact they are tied for having won the second tier the most times ever—seven. Until they won the 2021 FA Cup Final, they had played in and lost four FA Cup finals, the most by a team who hadn’t won it. They have won the (second-tier) League Cup three times, in 1964, 1997, and 2000.

In the 2013-14 season they won the Championship, thus going up to the Premier League. But in March of 2015, they seemed doomed to relegation. With only nine games remaining, they were dead last in 20th place, nine points below the 19th-place team. But they won seven of their last nine games to complete a remarkable great escape.

Then came the 2015-16 season, for which they had essentially the same team under a new manager named Claudio Ranieri, who was on his 16th job in 30 years. They were favorites to be relegated and 5,000-to-1 to win the league. But they started that season the way they had finished the last one: winning everything.

They just kept winning and winning, with a team of castoffs and low-budget finds. They had a counter-attacking style they were perfectly suited for and a dose of magic about them. Slowly the conversation shifted from “This is goofy fun that won’t last,” to “Wow, they’re really hanging in there,” to “Wait, could this really happen?” It was when they whipped Manchester City 3-1 away in February that reality began to settle in. With two games to go, their title was clinched when Tottenham was held at Chelsea in the (in)famous “Battle of the Bridge” game. (Google that one!)

The ultra-long-shot Foxes had done it, charming the sporting world along the way and—in a nod to Arsenal’s undefeated “Invincibles” team—earning the nickname “The Unbelievables.” They have consolidated since, finishing midtable or higher in the Premier League. But they suffered a tragedy when, just after a nationally televised game in October 2018, a helicopter carrying their owner, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, and several other people took off from the pitch, lost control and crashed just outside the stadium. No one survived, and the town was shocked by the loss of the popular owner. The entire team attended his funeral in Thailand.

The start of the 2021–22 season saw them in Europe again, thanks to the FA Cup win, and they made the semifinals of the Europa Conference League. They finished 8th in the league, just missing out on another European tour. Unfortunately, their run of success and top-half finishes came to a grinding halt in 2023 when they finished 18th and were relegated to the Championship. They seemed to take this in stride as they dominated The Championship during the 2023–24 season, finishing in 1st place with 97 points, earning them a trip back to the Premier League. And then they went back down again!

2024–25 SEASON: 18th in The Premier League (relegated), 4th Round FA Cup, 4th Round League Cup

2025–26 SEASON: Championship (relegated in 2025)

Any game between Leicester City, Nottingham Forest, and Derby County would be considered an East Midlands derby. There’s also a rivalry with Coventry City, at least according to the folks at Coventry City.

LCFC Women play in the Women’s Super League, tier 1 of the pyramid. Games are at the King Power Stadium, same as the men, or at the Pirelli Stadium, home of Burton Albion.

It’s not a song, but you’ll want to be in your seats when the team comes out. That’s because they are welcomed by a man blowing a fox-hunting horn. It’s awesome. Check the videos tab below for a recording of it.

The King Power Stadium, named for a Thailand-based duty-free retail company owned by the same people as the club, replaced Filbert Street in 2002. It’s a shame they don’t  keep the old names. You can visit the site of Filbert Street nearby and look for Gary Lineker Way; the longtime host of BBC’s Match of the Day is a local lad and played for the club briefly.

King Power holds 32,312 people in a cookie-cutter shape like so many other stadiums. But it can get mighty loud in there. Away fans will be in the northeast corner.

TOURS: Tours are offered on non-home-game weekends for £15. For more information visit Leicester’s website.

GETTING THERE: It’s about a 30-minute walk from the main train station, with signs pointing the way. Buses 84, 86, and 88 from the center will also get you to Freemen’s Common, a few minutes from the stadium. With all of this just an hour north of St. Pancras in London, you could have breakfast and dinner in London while catching a Foxes game in between.

PUBS: The Blue Boar in Millstone Street is a super friendly real ale pub that also serves sandwiches…that is, cobs. You’ll have to ask them about that! Sir Robert Peel is another fine pub closer to the ground in Jarrom Street. If you’re not feeling so adventurous, there is a Holiday Inn next to the stadium.

GRUB: Aside from the pubs, there are not many options near the stadium. There is a Local Hero chain pub and a Nando’s just a block east. Otherwise, eat something in the center.

AROUND TOWN: If English history is your thing, Leicester has some stuff to offer. Its history goes back to pre-Roman days, but the main attraction is the story of Richard III, the last English king to be killed in battle, in 1485. His makeshift grave was discovered in 2012 while ground was being cleared for a parking garage. He was reburied in the Leicester Cathedral, and there is now a visitor centre which tells the story of his life and death near where he was found.

Otherwise, there is a nice medieval quarter where you can find the 14th-century Guildhall and the cathedral, as well as shops and restaurants. If you like ruins, look for the medieval Leicester Abbey a half-hour walk north of the station and across the River Soar from lovely Abbey Park. Also on the river and closer to the stadium is the Roman-era Jewry Wall, which houses a medieval-themed museum. If botanic gardens are your thing, the one at the University of Leicester makes for a lovely walk. Kids might enjoy the National Space Center, with rockets and exhibits and a planetarium.

And finally, this might be of interest just to travel nerds, but Thomas Cook got his start in Leicester as well. Cook was instrumental in creating group travel excursions, the first being a special train for five hundred people from Leicester to a temperance society meeting in 1841. By the 1860s he was arranging trips to Europe, publishing guidebooks, and creating train passes and hotel coupons. His son took over in the 1870s and created a worldwide company that only went out of business in 2019.

There’s a statue of the elder Cook right outside the train station, and his original office, in Gallowtree Gate, is now a Foot Locker, but there are still a few murals of his earliest excursions on the wall. He ran a temperance meeting room upstairs, by the way.

Leicester v Manchester City, December 2015

(Writer’s note: This was written in January 2016, and I have decided to leave it as is.) Seeing a game at Leicester City these days is almost a spiritual experience. Have you ever been to a game where your team...

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