Leicester City relegated to third division a decade after historic Premier League title win

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Ten years after winning their historical Premier League title as massive underdogs under Claudio Ranieri, Leicester City are now officially relegated to the English third division at the end of another disappointing season. The Foxes have been relegated to League One, the English third division, from the Championship after a 2-2 draw against Hull City on Tuesday. The club was just relegated from the Premier League last season.

Despite starting the game off well with the goals scored by Jordan James and Luke Thomas that overturned Liam Millar's opener, the final goal scored by Oli McBurnie was the difference, leaving Leicester without chances to keep their chances of staying up alive.

Tonight’s result confirms our relegation to Sky Bet League One. pic.twitter.com/IsmoQbPOru

— Leicester City (@LCFC) April 21, 2026

Leicester will now feature in the third division for the first time since 2009. Before winning the historical Premier League title in 2016 under Ranieri, they also played the Champions League quarterfinals the following season, only losing to Atletico Madrid after knocking Sevilla out of the tournament in the round of 16. A few years later, in 2021, the Foxes won the FA Cup in the final against Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea.

During the 2022–23 season, Leicester City were relegated to the Championship but made an immediate comeback to the Premier League the following year before another disappointing campaign in 2024-25 when coach Steve Cooper was sacked after twelve games in charge, and his successor, Ruud van Nistelrooy, was not able to change things as the Foxes faced another relegation.

Their struggles started earlier this season with a six-point deduction for breaching financial rules. Off the pitch, tensions also grew, with chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha being widely criticised by the fans. Aiyawatt is the son of former owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who tragically died in a helicopter crash outside King Power Stadium in 2018, shortly after taking off from the center of the field.