Premier League Champions To Bankruptcy: The Rise And Fall Of Leicester City

Leicester City may have the greatest underdog story in the entirety of the sport.

Their against-the-odds Premier League title win is something that may well never be repeated. The Foxes journey only seemed to carry on improving from then on with multiple European campaigns and an FA Cup trophy win at Wembley.

However, football can ever so quickly turn on its head, and that is exactly what has happened to Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha’s Leicester. The club have just suffered back-to-back Premier League relegation and look at risk to endure a Championship season entailing bankruptcy and points deduction.

Leicester City are RELEGATED from the Premier League 🔽 pic.twitter.com/KE4zxGj8X4

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) April 20, 2025

Unimaginable Highs

We all know the story of Leicester City’s triumphs following their 2014 promotion to the Premier League. The club that was superbly ran managed to not only stay up in their first season back, but then do the unthinkable and win the Premier League for the club’s very first time, against 5000/1 odds.

It was the true story of togetherness, team spirit and momentum, as the Foxes operated on one of the tightest budgets in the division yet still achieved a miraculous 81 points. They just made it work – for example, signing players such as Ngolo Kante for as little as £7.5 million and then having him be one of the league’s top performers. He was not the only one either; the list of Leicester City bargains is endless.

(Leicester City Arrivals 2015/16: Transfermarkt)

Then their success only escalated from there. The following season saw them play Champions League football and reach the quarterfinals. This all preceded five consecutive years of finishing in the Premier League top 10 – two years of which were finished in fifth spot, granting Europa League football.

The 2020/21 season in particular was one bookmarked by every Leicester fan. Despite narrowly missing out on a Champions League spot, the Foxes were competing against the big guns all season – acting as the seventh member of the “Big 6”. Not to mention their remarkable campaign in the FA Cup. Brendan Rogers took his team to the final and managed to dismantle domestic royalty Chelsea, through a Youri Tielemens wonder-strike to win the 154-year-old trophy.

Youri Tielemans went for the spectacular... and delivered a moment that Leicester City fans will NEVER forget! 🔥🔥

What a way to break the deadlock in front of the fans at Wembley!#bbcfacup #bbcfootball #CHELEI pic.twitter.com/EU58SFjbYC

— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) May 15, 2021

A Sharp Turn Of Events

The 2022/23 season brought a numbing energy to Leicester. Despite their five years of challenging for Europe, the Foxes had just missed out again and had a disappointing season by their inclined standards. They had just lost two extremely important assets in Kasper Schmeichel and Wesley Fofana, combined with the aging of star man Jamie Vardy, which weakened the hope of Brendan Rogers’ men.

Ultimately this caused a huge upset for Leicester City, shocking the rest of the Premier League. They tussled amongst the bottom half of the table all season long, until their fate rested on the final day of the season. Just like that, the Foxes suffered relegation, as results elsewhere denied them salvation.

Leicester are relegated from the Premier League seven years after winning the title ​​💔 pic.twitter.com/6PtKZXkLiY

— B/R Football (@brfootball) May 28, 2023

All of the hard work they had used to build up so high had just collapsed after one poor year. There is no doubt that this was the signalling of of some tricky times to come. Furthermore, Leicester had lost the bulk of their squad amidst their Championship arrival, as James Maddison, Youri Tielemens, Harvey Barnes, Çağlar Söyüncü and Timothy Castagne all waved their goodbyes.

The Same Pain Twice

Leicester City certainly embarked on the 2023/24 Championship season as the league’s favourites. For a team that had just spent the last decade winning major trophies and competing in prestigious tournaments, it was a shock to the system seeing them compete back in the second tier.

New manager Enzo Maresca recruited some proven experience and talent to help them on their way, and they soon saw results. The Foxes cruised in top spot for the majority of the season and eventually gained automatic promotion back to the promised land, after achieving 97 points in the Championship.

(EFL Championship Table 2023/24: FotMob)

However, them being in the Premier League this time was different. Not only did they lose Maresca to Chelsea, but they were one of the league’s favourites to suffer the drop – despite all their years succeeding in the Premier League. The theories turned out to be true; last term Leicester faced the drop once again, alongside fellow newcomers Southampton and Ipswich.

These three sides falling below the standard just one year after their promotions displayed just how competitive the Premier League is getting, making it ever trickier for newly promoted sides to succeed. Now the Foxes look upon another season back in the English second tier, with more and more problems stacking up ahead of it.

For the second season in a row, all 3 promoted sides have now been RELEGATED from the Premier League 📉 pic.twitter.com/MHsz0h8SlT

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 26, 2025

King Power Business Collapse

Reports from The Sun are now suggesting that Leicester City’s majority owner King Power are staring down the barrel of potential bankruptcy, with monumental losses to their name. This has left Aiyawatt “Top” Srivaddhanaprabha with no choice but to step down from his position as chief executive of the duty-free company.

King Power have upwards of a 55% stake in Leicester, with Aiyawatt “Top” Srivaddhanaprabha being the CEO of the business, as well as the chairman of the Foxes. The potential failure of the Thailand based company has dashed scepticism all over Leicester, with many fans worried for the club’s future.

(Leicester City Ownership Split: LCFC)

Whilst Top is doing the best he can to attempt to save King Power from bankruptcy in his new role as “group executive chairman,” losses of up to £450 million could be expected for the Thai business. This has left the future of Leicester City in absolute uncertainty.

The financial hardship from their relegation certainly does not help Top’s situation, alongside a potential points deduction next term after the Foxes were said to have broken PSR rules in the 2023/24 campaign – as claimed by the Premier League Arbitration Tribunal.

Leicester City are facing a huge points deduction for next season if found guilty of breaching PSR rules.

— Bolarinwa Olajide (@iambolar) May 30, 2025

There is no doubt we have seen how much Top cares for Leicester City, after taking over from his late father Vichai in 2018. However, should King Power face bankruptcy, there may be no other way than for him to sell the club on elsewhere.