Leicester City: Premier League Champions Relegated to League One, the Third Tier of English Football

Liputan6.com, Jakarta - English football club Leicester City was officially relegated to League One, the third tier of English football, on April 21, 2026 after they could only manage a 2-2 draw against Hull City at home, King Power Stadium.

This relegation was a devastating blow for a club that had surprisingly won the Premier League title just ten years earlier.

Leicester City's descent into relegation was the culmination of a series of problems that had dogged the club for some time.

The draw against Hull City ended their slim hopes of Championship survival. With just two games remaining and a seven-point deficit to safety, Leicester City's fate was already unavoidable.

This relegation also marked the Foxes' second consecutive relegation, having previously been relegated from the Premier League to the Championship for the 2024-2025 season.

Following confirmation of Leicester City’s relegation to League One, Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha has issued the following statement:To our fans,Relegation to League One is now confirmed. As Chairman, that responsibility sits with me. There are no excuses.We have… pic.twitter.com/rKzmniJ34G

— Leicester City (@LCFC) April 21, 2026

A crucial match that would determine Leicester City's fate took place on April 21, 2026, at King Power Stadium.

From the start, the match against Hull City was high-tension, with Leicester needing a win to keep their hopes alive.

Hull City took the lead in the 18th minute through Liam Millar.

However, Leicester refused to give up easily by equalizing the score through a James Justin penalty in the 52nd minute.

Momentum for a comeback was felt when Jordan James also scored a penalty and Luke Thomas added a volley, turning the game around.

Unfortunately, Oli McBurnie's equalizer in the 63rd minute for Hull City dashed the Foxes' hopes once again.

Although Patson Daka hit the post late in the match, the 2-2 draw was enough to relegate Leicester City to League One.

Leicester City's relegation was not an isolated incident, but rather the result of a series of factors that accelerated the club's decline.

One of the most significant factors was a six-point deduction imposed in February 2026.

This sanction was imposed for breaches of English Football League (EFL) financial rules during the 2023-2024 promotion season, and the club's appeal was rejected in early April 2026.

In addition to the financial sanction, Leicester City also suffered back-to-back relegations, a rare double blow.

After being relegated from the Premier League to the Championship the previous season, they now find themselves dropping further down to the third tier.

Frequent managerial changes have also been cited as a contributing factor to the instability.

The club has changed managers seven times in the past three years, including names such as Dean Smith, Enzo Maresca, Steve Cooper, Ruud van Nistelrooi, Martí Cufí, and Gary Rowett, who was appointed in February 2026.

With this relegation, Leicester City will compete in EFL League One for the 2026-2027 season.

This is the second time in the club's history that they have played in the third tier of English football, having last won the title and been promoted back to the Championship in the 2008-2009 season.

Leicester City now joins the list of Premier League champions to experience a drastic decline.

They are the fifth club since the Premier League's inception to drop from the top flight to the third tier consecutively, following Swindon Town, Wolves, Sunderland, and Luton Town.

Furthermore, they are the second Premier League champion to be relegated to the third tier since Blackburn Rovers in 2017.

The decline in broadcast revenue will significantly impact the club's finances.

The average total revenue of a League One club in the 2023-2024 season was only around US$12.2 million, or about a quarter of the average revenue of a Championship club.

Club chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha has stated that responsibility lies with him and apologized for the disappointment caused.