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Leicester City Football Club Formation 1919
The club was re-elected to the Football League for the last time to date in 1915 when the League was suspended for four years due to a financial scandal and World War I. Leicester were playing in a regional league organized for Midlands clubs in this period. Due to financial problems, Leicester Fosse had ceased to exist when the League resumed in 1919. The club was reformed as Leicester City Football Club, particularly appropriate as the borough of Leicester had recently been given city status.
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Premier League Champs in 2016
Starting the 2015 – 2016 seasons as relegation candidates, and quoted by William Hill at 5,000–1, Leicester improbably went on to win the title in one of the most extraordinary seasons in English football. Under Ranieri, the team made a flying start to the season, losing only one game in their first 15 and topping the table in December ahead of Arsenal, Manchester City, and Manchester United. Striker Jamie Vardy, who four years previously had been playing non-league football at Fleetwood Town, scored in 11-straight Premier League matches, beating the record often set by Ruud van Nistelrooy in 2003. Having been bottom of the table at Christmas 2014, Leicester were top at Christmas 2015. Their form continued into 2016, and in February they beat second-placed Manchester City 3–1 away to go six points clear. For the remainder of the season, Leicester’s main title rivals were Tottenham, and they clinched their first-ever Premier League title, with two games to spare, on the weekend of 1–2 May when they drew 1–1 with Manchester United and Tottenham drew 2–2 with Chelsea. They also qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time.
The club was founded in 1884 as Leicester Fosse F.C., playing on a field near Fosse Road. They moved to Filbert Street in 1891, were elected to the Football League in 1894 and adopted the name Leicester City in 1919. They moved to the nearby Walkers Stadium in 2002, which was renamed the King Power Stadium in 2011.
Leicester won the 2015 – 2016 Premier League, their first top-level football championship. They are one of only six clubs to have won the Premier League since its inception in 1992. A number of newspapers described Leicester’s title win as the greatest sporting shock ever; multiple bookmakers had never paid out at such long odds for any sport. As a result, the team was dubbed “The Unbelievables”, a spin-off harking back to Arsenal’s undefeated team “The Invincibles”. The club’s previous highest finish was second place in the top flight, in 1928 – 1929, then known as the First Division.
Founded
1884
Location
Leicester in the East Midlands
Team History
1919 – Present / Leicester City Football Club
1884 – 1919 / Leicester Fosse
Nickname
The Filberts, The Fossils, The Foxes
Leicester’s nickname goes quite far back in the club’s history. Although initially there were other names, including “The Filberts” and “The Fossils,” the nickname “The Foxes” has remained since its introduction to the club in 1948. Leicestershire is known for foxes and fox hunting, with the club’s crest carrying a fox, and the mascot as a fox, the nickname “Foxes” has stood strong throughout the years.
Championships
Premier League / 1
2016
FA Cup / 0
Premier League – FA Cup Double / 0
Stadium
2010 – Present / King Power Stadium
2002 – 2010 / Walkers Stadium
1891 – 2002 / Filbert Street
1888 – 1891 / Victoria Park
1887 – 1888 / Belgrave Road
1884 – 1887 / Victoria Park
Current Owner
2010 – Present / King Power International Group
*Blue is this team’s history