Leicester City relegated to League One: ‘This could be a disaster for the club’ | soccer news

Leicester were relegated from the Sky Bet Championship after being held to a 2-2 draw against Hull.

Gary Rowett’s side needed to beat the Tigers to fight in the next game, and they fought back to score a goal to take the lead. But Oli McBurnie’s strike sealed their fate.

Relegation to the third tier comes less than a decade after Leicester beat odds of 5,000/1 to win the Premier League title under Claudio Ranieri.

In 2026/27, the Foxes will play in the third tier of English football for the second time in their 142-year history.

‘This could be a disaster for the club’

Courtney Sweetman-Kirk’s Football Special:

“I can’t believe what I’ve seen this season.

“We know the players are paying some attention, but what we have seen consistently throughout the season is that they are not paying enough attention, that is the simple fact.

He continued, “The most unfortunate people are the fans, the supporting staff, and those who will now lose their jobs.

“Honestly, I don’t know where the club is going.

“If you think about Seagrave, which is one of the best training facilities in Europe, how do they keep the lights on there? Do they still maintain Category 1 academy status? That’s just not what happens today.

“I’m really worried about the state of this club and where it’s going because I think this could be a disaster.”

Leicester’s league position after winning the Premier League

Rowett: Club must learn lessons as this season is full of regrets

Leicester manager Gary Rowett on Sky Sports Football:

“It’s incredibly frustrating. If you look at the game first, it’s quite symptomatic in some ways. We made some really poor mistakes in the first half that gave them the power. We did that too many times. We had a few good moments where we should have scored, but it didn’t fit the urgency or importance of the game.

“We came out in the second half and did really well. If we had played so quickly in the last five or six games, we would have gotten more points. We looked like a team willing to fight and we created a lot of chances but we couldn’t take them. I was very disappointed with the performance.

“The bigger picture is that we’re not relegated over three or four games, we’re relegated over a season. We missed a lot of chances but that’s not everything. It’s not just the forwards’ problem as we’ve only kept five clean sheets all season. We’ve also conceded poor goals and we’ll see that again tonight.

“I think it was probably the most frustrating time in my management because I thought we performed well enough to get the points. We created many opportunities, but it was too much of a waste.

“Of course it’s frustrating when it comes to urgency and passion. I can only speak for the time I’ve been here. The players have to feel it too. We had energy and commitment and were involved for most of the game, but sometimes we didn’t show the mentality to chase the game when something went against us. There were games where we gave in and let go when there was still something left to fight for.

“We’ve drawn a lot of games and, given the opportunities and statistics, we should have won a few of them, but we didn’t, and we have to learn from that. The club has to accept that this is a difficult part of the journey. Not long ago this club won the Premier League, which was an unbelievable high. Now we have to face how bad this moment has been. The club has to get back on its feet, but lessons have to be learned because this season is full of regrets.”

‘Leicester are nowhere near the standards expected – it will be a massive rebuild.’

Curtis Davis on Sky Sports Football:

“I can’t believe we’re sitting here and witnessing something like this.

“We have been watching it all season and have seen the Leicester team underperform. Individually and as a whole they have not been close to the level we expect from that group of players.

“Now it’s actually coming to fruition. They haven’t gotten out of it yet like we thought they would. Even within the company, I think they were thinking, ‘We’re going to be OK.’

“That didn’t happen, and this is what it ended up being.

“When you look at the quality of the players who are trying to applaud the few remaining fans… it must be painful for them, but it is even more painful for the fans who are so harsh to see that because the team was promoted two years ago with similar players.

“We have seen the financial problems they are having in the Championship. What will happen in Ligue 1?

“They have an £85m training ground that needs to be kept on. They have players who will be paid astronomical salaries. I know there will be pay cuts but they will still be paid astronomical salaries in League One.”

“You could say you’re going to be in Ligue 1 because of the quality, but who wants to be in Ligue 1 if the players don’t want to be in the Championship?

“I think whoever the manager is, he would be happier to see a lot of people leave, which is probably best for them, but it’s also a football club starting over because there are people who want to play for them.

“The scale of the reconstruction will be enormous.”

Hinchcliffe: Leicester’s relegation is unacceptable

Andy Hinchcliffe on Sky Sports Football:

“If you look back at the clubs that have been relegated before, you won’t find another club of the same level and experience as Leicester.

“This is a team expected to win the Championship title. Dropping to Ligue 1 is unprecedented. It’s a season no one saw coming.

“Everyone who plays for Leicester needs to take a long, hard look at themselves because this is unacceptable.”

Leicester finances will take ‘significant hit’ in League One

Rob Dorsett of Sky Sports News:

Leicester are expected to see a significant drop in revenue from League One next season. Revenues are expected to fall by around 50% compared to the Championship, which would see them earn less than a third of what the Premier League earned at this time last year.

The drop in revenue will be particularly pronounced for clubs that won the Premier League title 10 years ago and the FA Cup just five years ago. In the top division, annual revenues have reached £187m, but are likely to be just over £100m after this Championship season, while in League One this is expected to fall to £60m per year.

Despite the drop in revenue, Leicester will be by far the highest-grossing team next season, with the average revenue of a Ligue 1 club being around £10m, a sixth of that of Leicester.

Leicester’s rapid fall from grace will mean they will at least have some relief financially as a result of Premier League parachute payments designed to cushion the blow of top-flight relegation in 2025. That right will not change if the club suffers a second successive relegation.

However, these parachute payments decrease over time, so next season the amount will be much lower as well. For Leicester, it will be around £10m lower. Clubs that are eliminated from the top division receive approximately 55% of their Premier League qualifications in the first year, 45% in the second year and 20% in the third year.

This means that even if Leicester return to the Championship at the first attempt within the next 12 months, their parachute payment for the start of the 2027/28 season will be even smaller.

Leicester’s wages will need to drop by around 30-40%, some of which will naturally come from the inclusion of relegation clauses in player contracts. However, there is also the possibility of major changes to the squad, with a number of players becoming unaffordable for League One clubs or simply appearing to be of too high a quality to be content playing in England’s third tier.

The most obvious of these is Abdul Fatawu, who could have cashed in for around £35m when Leicester were relegated from the Premier League last summer.

A number of top clubs were ready to pay for him at the time. Sky Sports News said. With Leicester now in League One, his market value is likely to be much lower. For a potential buyer, it would probably be £10m-15m lower. Of course, you might expect Leicester to fight for the best price possible.