Leicester City F.C.
Premier League champions 2015–16, seven major domestic trophies.
Leicester City Football Club is a professional football club based in Leicester, East Midlands, England. The club competes in the third tier of English football. Founded in 1884 as Leicester Fosse, the club became Leicester City in 1919, coinciding with the city of Leicester gaining official city status. Leicester have won seven major trophies within the English football league system, including one Premier League, one FA Cup, three League Cups, and two FA Community Shields. The club's 2015–16 Premier League title win attracted global attention, and they became one of seven clubs to have won the Premier League since its inception in 1992.
Quick Facts
- Nickname
- The Foxes
- Ground
- King Power Stadium
- Capacity
- 32,259
- Club
- Leicester City
- Full name
- Leicester City Football Club
- Founded
- 1884 (as Leicester Fosse F.C.)
- Owner
- King Power International Group
- Chairman
- Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha
Facts from the source article.
History
Leicester Fosse was formed in 1884 by old boys of Wyggeston School and joined the FA in 1890. After playing at five grounds, the club moved to Filbert Street in 1891 and entered the Midland League that year. Elected to the Football League's Division Two in 1894, Leicester's first league match ended in a 4–3 defeat at Grimsby Town. The club won promotion to the First Division as Second Division runners-up in 1907–08 but were relegated after one season, which included a record 12–0 loss to Nottingham Forest. Willie Orr took over in 1926, and Leicester finished third in the First Division in 1927–28 before achieving their second-highest league finish as runners-up in 1928–29. The 1930s brought relegation in 1934–35, promotion in 1936–37, and another relegation in 1938–39, ending the decade in Division Two.
Club identity
Leicester City's traditional home colours are royal blue shirts, white shorts, and white or blue socks. Since the 2015–16 season, the club has generally worn an all-blue strip, except in 2019–20 and 2021–22 when white shorts returned. A fox image first appeared on the club's crest in 1948. The current badge, introduced in 1992, combines a fox's head with a cinquefoil from Leicester's coat of arms. The crest was updated for the 2002 stadium move and a special 125th-anniversary badge was used in 2009–10. The current crest has been in use since 2010. The club adopted the "Post Horn Galop" in 1941 to signal team entries, played live for the first half and via PA for the second. The anthem "When You're Smiling" is played before kick-off, a tradition dating to the late 1970s. The club motto is "Foxes Never Quit," displayed above the tunnel. Since 2018, Adidas has manufactured the kits; previous suppliers include Bukta, Admiral, Umbro, Scoreline, Fox Leisure, Le Coq Sportif, JJB, Jako, Joma, Burrda, and Puma.
Stadium and training ground
Leicester played at several early grounds, including Fosse Road, Victoria Park, Belgrave Road, Mill Lane, and the County Cricket ground, before securing land at Filbert Street in 1891. Archibald Leitch made improvements in the Edwardian era, and a two-tier stand known as "The Double Decker" was built in 1927. The Main Stand was replaced by the Carling Stand in 1993. In 2002, the club moved to a new 32,500-capacity all-seater stadium less than 300 yards away, at Filbert Way. The first match was a 1–1 draw against Athletic Bilbao. The stadium was called the Walkers Stadium until 2011, when it was renamed the King Power Stadium. Its current capacity is 32,259, with plans approved in December 2023 to expand to 40,000. In 2020, the club moved to a new training complex in Seagrave, described as one of the world's most advanced. The former training ground at Belvoir Drive now serves Leicester City Women.
Records and statistics
Graham Cross holds the record for most Leicester appearances with 600 matches between 1960 and 1976. Adam Black made the most league appearances, 528 between 1920 and 1935. Arthur Chandler is the all-time leading scorer with 273 goals, and he scored in eight consecutive matches in 1924–25. Arthur Rowley scored the most goals in a single season, 44 in 1956–57. Matty Fryatt scored the fastest goal in club history, in nine seconds against Preston North End in April 2006. Jamie Vardy set a Premier League record by scoring in 11 consecutive matches in 2015–16, finishing with 23 goals and winning the Golden Boot. The record transfer fee paid was approximately £32–40 million for Youri Tielemans; the highest fee received was about £80 million for Harry Maguire. The record home attendance is 47,298 for an FA Cup match against Tottenham Hotspur at Filbert Street in 1928. The highest attendance at the current stadium is 32,242 for a Premier League match against Sunderland in August 2015.
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