From Premier League Cinderella story to unbelievable nightmare: Leicester City on the verge

Leicester City is staring at the unthinkable. With just four weeks left in the Championship season, the club that once shocked the world now needs a late miracle to avoid slipping into England’s third tier – exactly 10 years after its historic Premier League triumph.

Under Claudio Ranieri, Leicester City lifted the Premier League title in 2015–16, finishing 10 points clear of second-place Arsenal in one of the most improbable seasons in soccer history. Just a year earlier, the club had narrowly avoided relegation, ending the 2014–15 campaign six points above Hull City, the final team to go down.

Here’s how the late Michael Robinson discussed the fairytale back then

Ranieri departed in 2017 and eventually retired from coaching in 2025 after a final stint in charge of AS Roma in Serie A. Since then, Leicester’s trajectory has sharply declined. After a decade in the top flight, the club dropped into the Championship at the end of the 2024–25 season, finishing 13 points behind Tottenham Hotspur, the last team to survive.

Now, the situation has grown even more precarious. With Bobby De Cordova-Reid, Dujuan Richards, Asmir Begovic and Jamaal Lascelles among its key figures, Leicester is just four games away from a potential fall into League One. The team currently sits on 41 points from 42 games, three behind Oxford City and four adrift of Portsmouth, the side just outside the relegation zone.

This weekend brings a defining moment. Leicester travels to Fratton Park to face Portsmouth in a game that could determine its fate. After that comes a clash with Hull City, a team chasing promotion through the playoff spots.

Leicester will then host Millwall in what could either seal relegation or keep survival hopes alive heading into a final-day showdown with Blackburn Rovers.

If the drop is confirmed, Leicester City would join a surprising group of former English champions – including Manchester City, Blackburn Rovers, Sheffield United and Huddersfield Town – to have fallen as far as the third tier.

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